Cardinal Stasis
by Paradigm of Writing
Summary: The boy tips over as if he's been struck by a silver bullet, and Will races forward, his heart is speeding a mile a minute. Will reaches the boy, and barely makes it as a resounding bang echoes all over the halls. There's so much red pooling from the boy's forehead, so many copper streams. Will looks down, and he begins to scream, he is screaming, and the screaming never stops.
1. Chapter 1: Burst

**Hey everyone, Paradigm of Writing here with a brand new story called Cardinal Stasis. In other terms, I'm calling the story 'Fire Period' but like the fancy sound more, I suppose. This is going to be in essential terms a high school AU and we know there are plenty of those. I haven't written a Percy Jackson piece since Ichor which was a one-shot posted all the way back in January 2015 (good god that was a long time ago). Here, we have an eventual Solangelo story AU... and that's the beginning. If any of you do read my other stories somehow (or have read any of my other PJO pieces...) you'll know that I love twisting canon and I do it quite dramatically. So... prepare for usual canon to be disrupted such as who is related to whom and all of that (pairings may be a little reworked). Some characters will have entire character flips such as our main star, Will, which you'll find soon enough. Three of the seven characters in this story are aged to older ages for adults, but besides that the other four characters are normal teenager age. For this story, there'll be the use of some strong language, but besides that not much else to say. Enjoy the first chapter of Cardinal Stasis, #1: Burst.**

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Will Solace hates anything that is contradictory. Though that may seem strange, he likes to explain to his students that there is plenty of opportunity to trip yourself up in arguments. Will Solace also hates anything that goes against his favorite school subject. English. At the age of thirty-eight, he's achieved a personal level of sadness given how he's stuck in a deadbeat job teaching 12th grade Literature to AP students who more likely than not only cared about insignificant details rather than all the symbolism in _Dante's Inferno_ or somesuch.

He leans back in his chair, currently examining the empty classroom set before him. It was the end of the day, a prime and sharp 2:15 on a Friday... he should be gone, but he chooses to stay. Will Solace stands at a comfortable height in the middle five feet, with bright blonde beach hair and glimmering diamond eyes which appraise situations as fast as they occur. Constantly dressed in cuffed dress shirts and mellowed out jeans, he examines his watch on his wrist with a delicate frown.

His student was late. Which normally never happened.

He frowns to himself. " _Strange. Probably forgot I needed to speak with him. This happens all the time, no problem._ "

The sun glows on the desks in a discordant pattern of light and shadow, dust particles dancing in a frenzied motion to create small whirlwinds and pollen devils. Will catches a particular wisp floating by the window, ornate shapes spawning from the movement. A low knock comes from the locked door opposite the windows, and the teacher turns, spinning around to see Jason Grace, a seventeen year-old, damn brilliant boy waving sheepishly on the other side of the door.

"It's open!" Will calls out. "Come in."

Jason opens the door, and the teacher now gets a sharper look at him. A chiseled face of eloquent proportions, lemonade hair that is almost too painful to look at, sapphires for eyes, a wide smile, and a handsome complexion. Will wishes he could tell the boy just how good looking he really is, that he's proud of him having a girlfriend or significant other who acknowledges it.

Will clears his throat, pushing himself somewhat back from his desk. "Good afternoon, Jason. Glad to see you finally show."

The teenager fidgets by the door, unsure of whether or not he should walk up closer to Will or stay by the entrance where it's safe. "Mr. Solace." he nods politely, shouldering a bright sky blue backpack.

"Please sit down." Will gestures to a chair placed right in front of him, which he had put there when the bell rang and all of his hooligan students went fleeing for the buses.

Jason chews on his bottom lip, eyes darting to the desks. "Can't I just sit down at the desks?"

"Up here, please." the teacher repeats, fixing his collar. The boy's disobedience and strangeness is odd to Will, he's normally very studious, polite, and responsible... now he's standing skittishly like a frightened dog. Jason lets out a quiet sigh, quiet enough where he thinks Will won't hear it, but he does and now the blonde teacher is staring at the kid, but he's trying not to as that _is_ impolite. Jason sets the bag down by the chair, and sits, his back straight, gaze hard, but eyes completely glazed with fear.

"Whatever it is," Jason blurts before Will can even open his mouth, "Just wanted to let you know that I'm sorry."

Will frowns, rubbing his chin. "You- you don't know why I called you in?"

"No, not really, sir."

"It's about the paper you turned in on Monday. Finally got around to grading your class... and I have to say, I was disappointed primarily with how you performed."

Jason stirs in the chair uncomfortably, scratching his right arm and looking elsewhere. "I'm sorry."

"Nothing to apologize about, Jason, I just wanted to know if something was troubling you." Will puts his hands back on his desk, sitting up, a stern gaze marring his features as he leans in.

For the past week, his six periods of AP Literature and Composition had been furrowing through the book _Metamorphosis_ by Frank Kafka, a contemporary piece of literature about a man being transformed into an insect of sorts and how his transformation completely destabilized his family home. A rather peculiar book from the 1930's, it withstood seventy plus years of being renown for exemplary tastes. Will particularly did not like the book, but he had a curriculum to teach. At the very end of dissecting it, the assignment was that the students were to pick a character from the story and write an essay as if they were that character. Being able to use either Gregor, the main character, his sister Gretel, or their father, the essay had to include underlying thoughts on what the characters were feeling at specific moments throughout the tale with what wasn't mentioned.

Needless to say, Will expected amazing results and soon became rather let down at the minutia being given to him counting as essays. One of his top students, which he has no shame in ever admitting, is Jason Grace, until _his_ paper crossed his desk and there was essential word vomit on the paper that accounted for nothing.

"Bottom line, Jason," Will began to speak, "Is that your paper was insufficient in displaying the true skill you have. Either you didn't want to do this assignment or throughout this whole school year you've been giving me this false sense of actually having interest in what you're doing."

"Sir?" Jason frowns, unsure of exactly what to respond with given the bitterness of his teacher's statement.

"As you know, currently sitting in the grade book, is a zero. But since you did turn in the paper, I can't give you a zero. While you wrote about the prompt I issued, it missed its mark by more than tenfold," A pause, Will shifts himself in his chair, his face becomes sterner. "I'm only going to ask you this once, and then it'll be out of hands forever. What grade do you think you deserve on that paper?"

He takes a moment to let this sink in the kid's head, hoping for the real answer he's been waiting for. _Leave it where it is. I failed at what I know how to do._ Except, he doesn't get that satisfaction. Far from it. "I think I deserve... better." Jason answers after a moment of silence, his expression deep in thought, eyebrows furrowed together with a sense of pensive action.

Will almost brays in his throat at the response. "Would that be suitable then? There's no number in the system for 'better', Jason. I can write on your paper that, _Do Better,_ but it certainly isn't enough and does not qualify as a grade."

"Mr. Solace-"

"Would you rather prefer a seventy, or an eighty, or a ninety? I can't give you a 'better'," to accentuate his point, Will moves his fingers to resemble air quotes. "How does an one hundred sound, then? To get a perfect score on your worst paper, ever? Would that be easier for you?"

"No, it wouldn't be. I don't want a grade I never deserved, which certainly isn't an A+," Jason argues, his hands tightening to fists. "Mr. Solace, I don't need you to insult me. If you want to talk about my grade, let's talk-"

Will sneers at his student, this is being supremely unprofessional, but screw it... he's an adult and he's going to act whatever way he aspires. "Good, you're being mature. Asking the teacher if they can talk. So, Mr. Grace, let's talk. You chose the role of Gregor in the _Metamorphosis,_ correct?"

This is a yes or no question, nothing in between, where there's a wrong answer. Will has no idea why he decides to pinpoint a scowl at Jason as he speaks, but the kid's lack of acknowledging his blunder is really digging deep into his skin. "Yes." Jason nods, curt and quick.

The teacher smirks slightly, before continuing. "You titled your paper... 'A Bug's Life- The Worst Disney Creation'..."

Jason laughs to himself, though he quickly shuts up by clamping a hand down over his mouth, blushing heavily. "Y- yeah."

Will sighs, leaning back into his chair. "That, automatically, Mr. Grace, suggests to me that you aren't taking this paper or this class very seriously. For being such a studious student in your other classes and in mine at default, I hope you can see why this is rubbing me the wrong way. It's a complete 180 from your usual self."

"Mr. Solace, I am taking this class very seriously."

"No, Jason, you're _not_ , evident by-"

"I am!" Jason yells, pounding a fist on the desk. Will repulses back, out of shock. Jason's warm gaze burns under a raging expression, before it falls lax suddenly, the azure glow returning, the boy's voice becoming impossibly soft, his hands shaking. "I am, Mr. Solace. I've just had a lot on my mind lately. My course load is quite heavy... and there's Piper... and I can't focus on everything everyone wants me to do."

Will scowls, and he's mentally kicking himself under the desk as his response is even more heartless than he imagined it could've been. "I understand that, Jason, but do _you_ have any idea how much I have on _my_ mind?"

"A lot?" the boy suggests weakly, shrugging.

"A lot," Will confirms, nodding, hands curling into fists, clenching and unclenching. "I have nearly two hundred students to keep track of here, let alone household bills, other problems with the teachers and friends and family I have. It's a problem with being an adult... you're plate is never cleaned. But, despite all that I find time to do my work. I still find time to grade these abhorrent papers which make me want to scratch out my eyes. Pile into the equation that some students get the gall to complain to me about what they're receiving based off their work makes everything turn into one pile of shit," Jason winces reflexively at the swearing. "And, Mr. Grace, this may come as a shock to you, but I just can't start grading everyone differently based on what is or what is not on their mind. That's a form of special treatment. Favoritism. You're an excellent student, so you above all else cannot have special treatment."

"I don't want special treatment." Jason whines, then he grimaces, a hand instinctually going up to his forehead, sensing a headache.

Will's anger lessens, he feels the boiling of his skin simmer some, and he's relaxed and calm once more. "I'll look at it again, if you'd like. I am more than likely going to give you a sixty, just like what nearly everyone else is getting with their meager intelligence levels. I hope that I never see this type of slop from you again, do I make myself clear, Jason?"

"Yes, Mr. Solace." the boy replies, rubbing his forehead. He stands, slinging a bag over his shoulder, and suddenly bowels over somewhat, hissing, fingers plaiting his forehead.

"You alright?"

"Yeah." Jason rights himself, taking a step for the door.

"Too much on your mind, son? Giving you a headache?" Will asks.

"I imagine so. I'm going to head." Jason steps forward, his feet crossing the threshold.

"Jason?" Will calls.

"Yes sir?" he stops and turns, his face evidently displaying the emotion of pain.

"Sorry if I seem to you that I'm being very mean and hard on you. A lot of potential I just can't see get put to waste," Will apologizes, making a sympathetic face. "See you tomorrow."

"Yeah, see you tomorrow." Jason nods, heading out the door.

Will goes back to his desk, looking at his watch, when he hears another loud hiss from the doorway. The man leans over his desk, frowning. Jason is standing in the hallway. Suddenly there's an agonizing scream that emits from him. The boy tips over as if he's been struck by a silver bullet, and Will races forward, his heart is speeding a mile a minute. Will reaches the boy, and barely makes it as a resounding bang echoes all over the halls. There's so much red pooling from the boy's forehead, so much copper. Will looks down helplessly, unable to move. This cannot be good.

Will can feel the vomit reappearing.

Something's burst.

* * *

 **There we are you guys, that was Chapter #1: Burst, of Cardinal Stasis. Will is going to be the main character of this piece, and eventually we'll see how the other characters shall start to come in, as I mentioned Piper, and you can see that Nico is in this piece as well by the main pairing. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter... there'll be more to come. This story won't be too long, I think somewhere in the low teens chapter wise, maybe even less. I have a lot planned for this piece, and it means so much that you decided to read this. Please review and let me know what you thought. What happened to Jason? Did he pass out? Was he shot? More answers shall be revealed next chapter, which I'm hoping to do at least one update a week if not more. I shall hope to see you all again with Chapter #2: Discredit. I love you all so much, and thank you for reading. Have an amazing day! Bye!**

 **~ Paradigm**


	2. Chapter 2: Discredit

**Hey everyone, Paradigm of Writing here with a brand new chapter of Cardinal Stasis, #2: Discredit. Last chapter, I introduced you all to our main character, a high school English teacher by the name of Will Solace is quick and curt, maybe a little bit rude, and definitely not happy. And on the flipside, Jason Grace, a simple high school student who looks as if something bad has happened to him by my summary and the end of the first chapter. This story will not be very long, actually, not much longer than eight or nine chapters... so we need to cherish and love what we have at the moment when we have it I suppose. This chapter is just between Will and now our new character introduction, Nico! I hope you enjoy Chapter #2: Discredit!**

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Will grumbles to himself, bringing the warm cup of coffee to his lips, giving a satisfying gasp as the murky cocoa liquid vanished behind his set of pale lips. He watches the falling sun sink beneath the sky in an array of wild pinks, dashing sunbursts, edgy amaranthines, and chilling cardinals. He shudders at the striking red in the sky, it resembles blood with such a strong familiarity that now he sees the youthful blonde's face in the light above, and he's falling back, against the desk, now muttering the student's name.

"Jason!" he cries out loud, before shaking his head and breathing in heavily. He places the cup of coffee down on the desk, no longer feeling like he needs caffeine in his system before the day is over. It'll just lead to restless nights tossing and turning in the covers while tormenting nightmares cripple his every movement. He shuts his eyes, his hands gripping the edge of the desk as if he'll keel over without having a surface to grasp. It torments him, it is killing him slowly, killing him softly. Why can't he get the boy's rippling electric blue eyes out of his head? Or the sand cropped wave of lemonade hair followed by that generous smile and abashed complexion... gah, it is tearing him apart!

A knock seems to come from the other side of the door, but Will doesn't notice, he's engrossed in looking at the sky once more and seeing whether or not the kid's face will appear. He leans in, and by this point he's so transfixed that if someone were to examine the teacher's face, they'd see complete lack of focus, blurred eyesight, and a drooping mouth.

"Will? Hey, Will!" a voice behind him calls out.

Will swivels on his heel, nearly falling back, and almost scaring half to death the young twenty-two year-old school guidance counselor, Nico Di Angelo. The blonde's face relaxes significantly, the tension in his joints and bones receding back into their marrow spots where his skin feels cold and clammy. Will notes in his head that's he sweating by the gloss of sheen clear liquid down his arms and perhaps dripping off a few strands of hair. "Oh. Hey, Nico." he greets nonchalantly, putting a hand up and having it fall back down without much effort.

Nico Di Angelo smiles back. His long, broodingly dark hair swoops down his face like an eagle's wing. His illuminating hazel eyes blink cheerfully at the teacher, almost in suppressed innocence that Will is all too familiar with. Nico was a brand new guidance counselor to the school, just starting last year at that prime age of twenty-one, able to drink, able to now hold a 'worthy' profession... hah, that's a bunch of bullshit.

"Afternoon, Will. You seemed distracted." Nico greets, and Will notices that the man has a backpack slung over his shoulder, a striking bright sky blue, and now the teacher's heart is panging at the thought of Jason Grace, and his knuckles go white while he's gripping the desk once more, but he has to make sure that Nico does not notice. Nico cannot notice!

"I'm not distracted-"

"Just kidding," Nico waves his hand between them to blow off the joke, though it really didn't seem like a joke at first glance, but more power to the dark haired male. "It's nearing six. What are you still doing here? I thought you'd be gone for the day... actually, you're the only teacher left on campus."

Will blushes up to his neck, pulling at his collar. "Made myself a few cups of coffee, did some grading..." he trails off, noticing the perplexed raise of an eyebrow at his nervousness. Shit. Nico's not buying this one bit. What does he say? What is even okay to say? His eyes highlight themselves on the copy of _Metamorphosis_ sitting on a nearby desk, looking all lonesome and dark with the black cover. "Had just put down Frank Kafka's _Metamorphosis_. It's the book we're currently studying in class."

"Sounds exciting." Nico teeters back on his heels, and there's a sheepish grin that truthfully suggests he doesn't honestly give a damn what Will has been reading, but it's all for the support, he supposes to himself.

"I can appreciate good literature whenever I find some," Will scratches the back of his neck, going around to the back of his desk, plopping down in the swivel chair, and taking another sip of his coffee. "Even though the book is nearing the age of most elderly citizens... we still read it because it has upstanding grammar and... well... it's a good book." He's lost in exactly what to say. For some reason, whenever Will is around Nico, he looses his ability to communicate.

Nico claps his hands together after a sudden though, causing the blonde to jump. "Isn't there a comic book to go along with the story? I remember reading it or something..."

"You do?" Will raises a perplexed eyebrow this time. It's almost hysterical and hard to believe that anymore. Four years out of school and he can remember an assignment from that long ago? Odd... but, Will tries not to focus on that minute detail, it only will trip him up later on much more important things. _Did you pay your taxes? Why... yes, I did. With a comic book. Wait... I'm sorry, that's not-_

"Yeah," the guidance counselor moves himself so he's standing straight in front of Will, and that is also when the blonde notices there's something rolled up in Nico's right hand. "I remember that assignment in particular because that was when we didn't have the physical book with us. We only had the comic. I found it interesting, though I haven't followed up with it."

"Ah." Will nods. He rubs his forehead, and then immediately stops as the image of Jason Grace in Nico's spot reveals itself, and there's the blonde boy rubbing his own head before falling to the ground with the copper river of life pouring from every crevice. Will shuts his eyes quickly, and once he opens them, there's a delayed hesitance behind his movements. The blood pressure drops, there's no dead boy in front of him.

"Written by... Frank Kafka, right?"

"Given that I had just mentioned him as the writer, yes, you're correct," Will smiles. "Good listening skills."

"Would you like me to find you that comic? Perhaps it could be used as an assistance to the curriculum?" Nico suggests, shouldering the backpack some. Will's left eye inexplicably twitches. Everything about this day is irritating him. A week since Jason's collapsed and these memories still haunt him down the hall with his ghastly, horrified complexion.

"You don't have to do that." Will says, but he's looking at the cup of coffee to get away from the backpack. Anything but the backpack.

"I'll look for it online and bring it tomorrow." Nico pulls out his phone, gives himself a little reminder, and he's brought his head level to Will's and their eyes connect. Diamond orbs colliding with hazel ones, a moment of preciousness torn apart by Will's raggedness. He's feeling old, sitting in the swivel chair, watching the sun set, drinking his horribly made coffee with too little sugar and too much creamer, with a red pen spilling out cardinal ink over pallid pieces of paper... god, he actually thinks he may hate teaching.

"Okay," Will resigns himself to knowing that if the counselor says if he'll do something, he'll do it. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. Which sort of irritates him, but to each his own. Not going to argue with something when there's no argument to begin with. The teacher feels something crawl on his skin, and he scratches instinctually at his arm. "What's up, Nico? I doubt you just decided to stop by."

Nico's eyes darken, his mouth opens as if he's devising some witty remark, but instead he sprouts, "Nothing. Just came by to put up this poster for the guidance department. You're one of my last classrooms actually, I was about to head out soon myself."

Will claps his hands, sits up, and for some reason there is a scowl rippling across the blonde's features. He notices this and tries to lessen it, but now he thinks he's furrowing his eyebrows or frowning so deep that there can be seeds placed in those lines. "Let's see it."

The darker haired male blanches momentarily, his already pale skin that could resemble a corpse in pallor light, pales further. "Oh... uh, sure. But, Will, let me just say-"

"Let's see it," This request is a little more forceful. "I want to see what you've got. Come on, open up. I won't judge," Will is lying through his teeth, but he really doesn't give a damn. The world itself has given up on him. Nico pauses, and slowly begins to unfold the rolled up object in his hands. The rolled up piece of paper reveals itself to be a poster. In big, bold black letters is a statement. Will's heart sinks, saying it aloud. "Everything will be alright. Oh, good god Nico. That's just wonderful."

The poster is a pretty large one if there were many comparable sizes to scrutinize. The message is written in a swooping font, like pen calligraphy, probably done by a girl's handwriting given it is so impeccably neat that even a word processor couldn't do the things this poster looked like. Evident signs of marker bubble in the spaces of the letters which are left by the swooping writing, and Will's eye is twitching once more as he realizes that the bubbles are that of a dyed crimson. More _freaking_ blood. An aquamarine border lies around the edges, and Nico holds it in front of him, kind of abashed, perhaps he should be.

"Yeah..." Nico trails off.

Will looks sort of depressed as he scoots forward, pushing the cup of coffee away. "It's wonderful, Nico."

The dark haired male can tell when Will is bullshitting, such as right now, so he licks his lips and makes up for the lack of effort behind the explanation. "Will, it's the official guidance department policy. Straight from the top... you know how Rachel Dare gets when she wants a project green lit for school. It just happens and there's nothing I could've done to fix it. I'm putting them in all of the classrooms, like I said. Actually... this is my last one. So, I put you last on purpose," Nico's face brightens momentarily, as if he's jubilant in telling the empty classroom what he did, but it sours back at Will's unhappy scowl. "It's going in every classroom, not just yours. So don't blame me. It's not _my_ idea." As he says this, Nico places it against the wall, and it sticks, looking like there had been glue or tape already placed on the rolled up poster. He retracts away from it, placing his hands on his hips. He feels good. That is, until Will opens his damn mouth.

"Whose idea was it then, if it wasn't yours?"

"Well, the posters were _my_ idea..." Nico whispers, and he mentally kicks himself at the fact that Will's face has turned dark.

"Nico, are you _shitting_ me right now-" Will begins to rant, his hands curled into fists.

"They weren't supposed to look like this, okay! I didn't want a sweet font style, but Rachel went ahead and wrote the information out for me because she felt compelled to do so. I liked it nicer in a comic book font, the blocky kind of letters. The letters were meant to be rounder, but again... Rachel. The colors are flipped. There isn't supposed to be any read. It's all supposed to be blue and yellow. Read in a book that blue means relaxation. Like the ocean, or royalty, or something. Like, a color for sympathy and relaxation. It was meant to be this way so it could help relax people throughout the day, on just about anything."

Will feels a wicked smile grow on his lips and before he can stop himself he's snidely remarking about the poster. "Well, Nico, I have to admit that I look at this poster and feel very relaxed, almost where I can imagine myself swinging in a hammock back and forth with a pina colada underneath a palm tree. I can _taste_ the coconut."

Nico's voice sounds like he transformed into a kicked dog. "You- now you're just making fun of me. I tried my hardest with this and all you're going to do is tear me down?"

But the blonde isn't finished, oh hell no, he has so much more to say. "And if it's put on a poster, Nico, then it means it must be true. Just like, how, maybe four years ago, we all thought everything on the Internet would prove to be true. Look how that turned out! But since the poster means everything is all right, then we should get back to class."

The counselor slams his hand down on the desk, startling Will, and Nico's face is grim, yet his eyes are still light and appeasing back. "I'm not trying to hint at anything being alright, Will. Just helping the students, and maybe the teachers if they need a soapbox, to start a dialogue with someone-"

"Oh, no, Nico, you don't understand," Will stands up for this because now he's feeling entitled, and he's gripping the coffee mug as if he's about to throw it at a wall like a grenade and wait for the explosion and the screams of mutilated bodies. "There's definitely a dialogue going on throughout this school. However, like you may have also noticed, it is outside the classrooms. On stuff that differs from any subject. I should be having a dialogue in my class on Frank Kafka or something like that... Do you want to know how many students I had in class today?" he asks. Nico shuffles his feet awkwardly, looking down at the tile floor, not answering. Will tuffs out a breath of hot air. "Seven kids. Out of twenty-three. All of my students are either skipping on trauma leave or finding a way to schedule twenty-five million appointments with you. That means I've got no one left to teach. How do you think I feel? I can't do my job."

Nico closes his eyes, and before he can scream back an argument, he makes sure his response is mature like a true adult, lest there be some issues that would need solving. "If it makes you feel any better, Will, I'm also trying to do _my_ job, and that's to help students get placed in their right mind. I may be fairly new at this, but I've been in your student's shoes just a few years ago, so I'm still partially thinking like one of them. It's important, and this is personal that you get these influential teens with their emotions to talk about how their feeling. Maybe I wouldn't have to do that if you started to encourage it in your class-"

"In my class?" Will is trying not to disrespectful, but his voice rises up to one of incredulousness, and he's leaning his head back and laughing, almost tipping the coffee over. "How is that going to happen in an AP Literature and Composition class, Nico?"

"I mean... yeah," Nico blinks, he hasn't fully thought this through. "Like... what are you reading in class right now? _Metamorphosis?_ "

"No," Will dissuades. "We're moving onto _Hamlet_."

The dark haired male smiles in such a particular way that it's creepy, and he's clapping his hands, pacing, formulating thoughts that'll perhaps make no cohesive sense, but he's thinking dammit. "Okay, that works perfectly. I remember that unit. So... if I recall correctly, _Hamlet_ is basically about a guy in nature whose father dies, and he's trying to kind of deal with it all."

"In essence," the blonde agrees, and there's the phantom of a smile tracing his lips as well. "I really did teach you well."

"Yeah, anyways, the story..." Nico trails off, taking a moment to pause and stare off at the sunset which has now exploded in vibrant color. Like that Pocahontas song. "You've got your class talking about our lead, Hamlet. You just have to say... 'Well, y'know that Hamlet's father died, and now he's really upset. Like, beyond upset. How would _you_ guys feel if someone _you_ knew died'," he pauses for effect, but his face falls at Will's impassive face. It's like nothing's getting to him, dammit. "Do you see what I did there? Or, at the very least, tried?"

"Yes." Will replies numbly. He wants to go home. He wants to leave. He doesn't want to be sitting here listening to Nico.

Nico senses the discouragement, and he waves his hand about again. "Or, whatever you want. I just think everyone's having a really hard time with what happened to Jason and knowing that he died. Maybe it'd be helpful for something like that. I mean, put into my perspective for a minute. These teenagers, more than likely, and I'm sure there's a percentage dealing with it all that reflects it, they've probably never dealt with a human loss, but only those in television or movies or books. This is the first time such a thing has happened. I need the kids to discuss their feelings with someone they trust. Like me. Or you. Or any adult on this campus. Or... themselves, actually. It'd be good for the students. It'd be good for you, as well, I feel."

"Why?" Will moves himself around the desk, and now he's on the same side as Nico, blocking him from leaving, though it isn't his intent at all. "What do you mean about it being good for me? I'm more than capable of handling my emotions, thank you very much."

The other male shrugs, he truthfully has no idea where this is going, but it's leaving Will distracted so it's working beautifully. "I- I don't know, Will. Jason was one of your students, right?"

"Yes," the blonde answers, then corrects himself. "Jason was one of my students, but he was out of many. Sat in the very front by the door, sixth period. Always the first one here, always the last one out. But, then again I've had many students over my teaching career. Hell, Nico, _you_ were one of my students four years ago."

Nico blushes, but he has no idea why he does so. "Yeah, I know, Will. You remind me of that all the time."

"And that's supposed to mean what, exactly?" Will leers at the guidance counselor under his blonde bangs. He's regretting the fact that he went the other way around the desk, now. "I didn't think there's anything wrong with mentioning that. Lets you know your place, sometimes. Still a student in my eyes, and perhaps it's not going to change."

"Nothing, nothing," Nico assures him again with the wave of a hand. He does that a lot, apparently. "I mean... I'm not necessarily a teacher. Being a guidance counselor stretches things in terms of what my exact position is here on campus. But, that's besides the point. I have a feeling you'd be a little more wound up if some other teacher came to talk to you, like Coach Gleeson, the gym teacher. He's been here... what, thirty years?"

"That's the problem," Will deadpans. "Do you seem me talking to any of the senior teachers?"

"No..."

"That's because I talk to you."

"Which is fine and all-"

"Is it?"

"Yes!" Nico shouts, and then he goes back to a quieter level of speaking. "I know that, Will. It's a good point, but I have a good point as well."

"And that would be what?" Will's head hangs to the side as he gazes at the dark haired male. For a split second, and Will's heart is swimming at exactly why he does this, his eyes have focused on Nico's lips and the slight crack at the corners, and he's wondering what his tongue would feel like glancing over those cracks. Will shakes his head, fortunately Nico has his head turned to face the window, lost in thought once more. "You said there was a point behind all this."

Nico winces to himself, opening and closing his palms against the side of his pants. "My point is, you were the very last person to see Jason, right before he died."

Will freezes, and he turns around, facing the whiteboard because there's Jason's face plastered all over the walls, crimson tears streaming down a bruised face, black and blue blemishes lining his neck, his heart, and all the while the boy is screaming in genuine fear all because the blonde English teacher reacted too damn slow. Will can feel his heart slow down, and he straightens himself back up. "Okay?"

"Am I right?" Nico asks, his voice gentle, he knows most definitely he's dancing on thin ice with razor sharp skates.

"Right, what?" Will retorts back, his voice blunt, and he turns, his eyes bloodshot yet there are no tears marring his face.

"You were with him before he collapsed, no?"

"Yes. Yes, I was."

Nico puts his hands up. Tension seems to radiate between them, and out of nowhere this could get ugly and that really shouldn't happen. "Well, Will, if you really don't want to talk about it..."

"There's nothing to talk about Nico! I know that you damn well know that's the truth!" Will yells, swiveling on his heel, face bright red in burning frustration. "Jason came to see me about a paper, because I specifically requested he come speak to me on the matter. He had turned in an essay that was pure an absolute horseshit and I wasn't accepting work of that caliber in such a high maintenance class! Students will stop by all the time for conferences with me, either by their own intuition most likely or if its because I requested their presence, Nico. You know that. Every day this happens. I don't see what difference it makes-"

"There is no difference, Will." Nico backs up, his back hitting the front side of a desk in the first row. He's cornered.

Will stops his rant immediately, face going lax. "Good."

"To me." the dark haired man finishes, again sheepishly smiling, and now there's a burning tint at his cheeks, and for some reason, in the midst of his anger, Will is thinking his ex-student looks really cute when caught off guard.

"Oh, here we go." Will groans into his hands.

"No, Will, I'm not-" Nico starts, but he shuts his mouth as pure objectification will get him nowhere with someone as stubborn as an ox. A wild, Texas ox at that. "I'm just _saying,_ Will, that maybe, just maybe, if I were in your position, I'd be pretty freaked out. There are things you can get out of this you know, like appeasement, or personal satisfaction or-"

The blonde makes a decisive cut of the conversation with his hand, a darkness filling his pupils. "Nico, seriously, just let it go. I am completely, one hundred percent fine. Jason Grace is dead, and there's nothing I or anyone else can do about it. It is tragic with what happened to him, he was a fine young man and excellent student. Again, however, I am no fortune teller or a supernatural being who could've predicted the ending of that school day. Jason Grace had an aneurysm, a brain aneurysm. No one in the entire school would've seen it coming. That's something you don't try and make sense of, Nico. _I'm_ not going to try and make sense of it either."

"No... there actually is something you can do in the midst of all this, Will, and that's help people understand how they feel with the whole ordeal and-"

"Nico, unless I've been mistaken and you're getting our jobs mixed up, last I checked, I'm a senior teacher teaching college leveled literature. You're a guidance counselor. It's _your_ job to help the students get past this-"

"I'm not talking about the students here, Will!" Nico shouts, throwing his hands out. "Why can't you see that? You're acting blind. Will, I'm talking about you. When I entered the classroom, before you turned around and got all flustered... I heard you talking to yourself."

"Talking to myself?" Will raises an eyebrow, looking down at his coffee warily.

"Yes."

"What did I say?"

"Nothing important." Nico rubs his right shoulder innocuously, trying to focus on anything but the pent up anger collecting in the teacher's face.

"What. Did. I. Say?" Will enunciates each and every word with a locked jaw, his eyes hell bent.

"Jason. I heard you say Jason's name." the dark haired male blurts, and he's embarrassed now, because shit, he has now caused his favorite adult on school campus to think he's having nightmares and getting freaked out, and son of bitch, why didn't he put up a filter?

Will flinches imperceptibly, then his furrowed eyebrows deepen more out of anger. "And why do you think that is? That's your fault isn't it?"

"How would it be my fault?" Nico pleads, but his voice is too weak to argue.

"You've got everyone talking about Jason all the time, Nico. It's all I _ever_ hear nowadays on this campus. It travels behind me everywhere. All the students are mentioning him, all the teachers... it's like everyone's taking a new drug by the name of Jason Grace and they can't get enough of it! Like, this afternoon, you guys put together that awful, _god_ awful assembly with the candles and the slideshow about him and-"

"Slideshow was Rachel's idea. Not mine."

"Doesn't matter to me," Will says crossly. "You have everyone making such a big production out of all this. Forget the fact we still have a curriculum to teach, and AP exams are only a month away at this point-"

"Will, please, just be quiet-" Nico starts, placing his hands on the blonde's shoulders, and he strangely notices how odd they feel, how boney, yet how good and nice they feel in his hands.

"So, when I come back here to actually do some work there's this pile of letters wishing me a very well week and to try to leave Jason's name out of my head and my life-"

"Will!" Nico screams.

The blonde blinks, and he notices the other man's hands on his shoulders, almost protectively, but definitely awkward being there, and that needs to change ASAP. "What?"

"Stop getting mad at me. Why are you, actually?" Nico's brow is deep in thought, pensive, as he's trying to figure out how he'll examine this strange case of irrational behavior later down the road. "I'm just trying to help you."

Will shrugs off Nico's hands, moving past him and stopping by the poster. He lets out a huge sigh, rubbing his forehead, shutting his eyes, and letting the tension flow backwards through his back, down to the soles of his feet, and into the tile. "You really, really want to know how you can help me, Nico?"

"Yes. Anything."

"You can help the _students_ , the people your job actually has you care for... not me, and get them back into my class so I can teach." Will's jaw is locked and set, and he's not looking at the other man, but there's a darkness, a chilling coldness reflected in his words that makes Nico feel something painful in his chest. Like revolving fire.

"Alright. I suppose that's something I can work on doing. I'll be back here tomorrow, during your planning period, if you don't mind."

"There's no need to stop by..." Will throws out his plea weakly, but it most likely will not be getting acknowledged.

"Yeah, I'm going to. Tomorrow morning, after first period, I have a conference with Piper McLean. I'm told she's in your sixth period as well, right? Jason's girlfriend?" Will blinks without much interest in the statement, causing Nico's face to flush awkwardly. "Anyways, yeah, that's what my day shall entail. More conferences. I gotta get going. You heading home too?"

"Yeah."

"Still remembering to get cat food?"

The blonde frowns. "Cat food?"

"Didn't you used to have a cat? I remember you telling me about him. A small little kitten with a dark coat. Named him Chiron, after the centaur?"

Will's face is devoid of emotion. "Nico... Chiron died years ago. Actually, a year before your senior year. Died by running right into traffic. Got killed by a taxi that didn't see him because the driver had been texting when pulling into his parking spot."

"Oh. Will, I didn't know that. I'm sorry."

"Don't be. You can't make sense of something like that. I can't."

Nico nods, making his way to the door, having slung his blue backpack over his shoulder once more. Will notices it and he catches himself staring at the backpack, but now his eyes linger to Nico's neck which is pale and red, to his bony fingers that grip at the sides, and he's blushing and coughing, sadly not noticing that the guidance counselor has stopped in the doorway, glancing at him with a reserved peculiarity. "Will?" Nico calls.

"Yes?"

"Everything _will_ be alright."

Will sighs to himself, again furrowing at the eyebrows. "Good night, Nico." He doesn't watch him leave.

Nico exits out the doorway, his voice being heard down the hall. "Good night to you too, Will."

There's a moment of awkward, inebriated silence, and Will then turns to the poster that Nico had put up against the wall all those minutes ago. He scowls. This message is absolute horseshit. _How can anyone read this and really think something like that? Must be on heroine or something, for lord's sake._ Will looks back at the doorway, making sure it is empty. It is, and there's no flickering of a dead Jason in the hallway or Nico's appraised face peeking around the corner to do one last double check. Empty and desolate. Like Will's heart. The coast is clear.

Will rips the poster off the wall, crumbling it and ripping it apart into tiny pieces.

He throws it in the trash.

"Good riddance." he snorts.

* * *

 **Good lord... jeezum crow that was much longer than I anticipated it being. Well, there we have it guys! That's Chapter #2: Discredit, of Cardinal Stasis. I'm super happy with this chapter, given it is a conversation just between two characters that I held for 5.4k words... I'll say my hands are tired and my mind doesn't want to work anymore. What do you guys think of Nico? He's just being a gentle guy, right? Sweet and all? Well, he's more devilish than you think. Will, well, he's more than likely going to act like a young curmudgeon throughout most of this, but we'll see him warm up some. Did you guys sense any romance in this chapter? I'm trying to hint slowly, super slowly. And don't worry, this isn't the only pairing in the story... there'll be a few more. Please review and let me know what you thought! It'll mean so much to me knowing what you thought whilst reading. I hope you have an amazing day. I shall see you all very soon with Chapter #3: Separation. Thank you for reading and reviewing! I love you all so much! Bye!**

 **~ Paradigm**


	3. Chapter 3: Separation

**Hey everyone, Paradigm of Writing here with a brand new chapter of Cardinal Stasis, #3: Separation. I'm super excited for this chapter as we get once again a look at some more new characters, such as Piper McLean, Luke Castellan, and the one and only Thalia Grace! Thank you all for the views, and the reviews letting me know how I've been doing, it's very insightful. Last chapter was one of eventful occurrence with Nico, our fresh and sweet guidance counselor who'll be the voice of reason to Will, who went off on many,** ** _many_** **tangents to the dark haired adult. Where shall their relationship go off to, I wonder? Hmm... nobody knows, nobody knows. This chapter will have some swearing in it, primarily the f word, but not so much where I think I need to put this story in the Rated M category. Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Piper McLean sometimes wonders why she makes friends with the people that she does. As she sits on a beanbag chair in the guidance department waiting for the counselor, Nico Di Angelo, she feels very stupid for leaving her phone in her bag, in her locker halfway across campus. Lost, it's almost painful having to deal with the antics of the boy stuck alongside her. Nico's desk is cluttered with all sorts of knick-knacks, such as stress balls with slogans that read _Just Breathe_ , or stuffed toys that look as if a slovenly, poor child in Mexico made them with paperclips for fingers. A couple of glow sticks sit in a novelty coffee mug with the words _Happy Birthday, Son_ strewn across it. It takes all of Piper's will to not, and it's killing her just like not having her phone, to get up and crack one, turn the lights off, and have a rave party in the guidance office with glow sticks and loud music.

She's having trouble deciding if she should look up at the ceiling and make stories out of the etchings she sees in the plaster or to scowl at the figure of one of her friends, Luke Castellan. At seventeen, Piper has dealt with many things, some of them good, some of them bad. She isn't sure whether or not to put Luke Castellan on the good or bad list. It'll come to her eventually. Piper swipes some of her auburn hair behind her head and sighs. This appointment seems to be starting much later than usual... it's taking so long for Nico to come that she wants to bury her face in the beanbag chair and suffocate.

Luke straightens himself after looking around on the desk, his jaw tight and his eyes somewhat disappointed. "Dammit... I can't find it." he swears.

"Before or after you made a shitstorm of his desk?" Piper asks coolly.

"Both," Luke snorts. He runs a hand through his short blonde hair. Sometimes, when placed alongside his best friend, which was Jason Grace, they could pass for spitting images with one another. "Maybe- maybe I should make a _fake_ ID," his face momentarily brightens before falling as his bright, _bright_ idea is more stupid than brilliant at this point. "Nevermind. That'd be stupid. There's no such thing as a good fake ID anymore. You know it too."

"Do I?" Piper raises an eyebrow. Sometimes she wonders just what exactly goes on in his head, but it isn't a good thing to question it or otherwise it'd make her head hurt and that wouldn't be fun. No one wants their head to hurt after thinking.

"Yeah... think about it," he points at her, but he really has no idea why he needs to point in getting his message across. "Like... this weekend, when you and I and my parents went to dinner, and we passed by Camp Half-Blood? The bar? Well, there were those dumb like middle-schoolers who thought it was cool to go to the bouncer and try and get in. With their 'fake' ID's," Luke makes the gesture at the word fake, causing Piper to roll her eyes. Boys. "Those guys were such stupid tools if they think they can walk up to some bouncer and show it to them. Made out of tape, plastic library cards and god knows what else. But, I have a plan. I'm going to try and get in to Camp Half-Blood on Friday."

Piper snorts before she can make note to stop it and she's flushed red with embarrassment. "Oh, really? Tell me your master plan. I'm so intrigued." she bats her eyelashes, propping herself up on an elbow, leaning in, puckering her lips.

Luke sticks out his tongue. "Seriously, Pipes, listen. I'm gonna walk up to that bouncer, or whoever it is and simply say this, 'You know what, sir? I like your honor system, and so I'm gonna be honorable back. No bullshit between us. I'm seventeen, eighteen in a month. I can drive. I have enough money for my age, and I want to go inside and get one beer at this fine establishment of Camp Half-Blood," the blonde finishes, smirking. "It'll work like a charm. Just need to be eloquent is all."

She rolls her eyes to the nth degree at this point, how can a boy be _so_ damn stupid? No person is going to instill some sort of honor system. It's a law that no one can enter a bar and drink if they're under the age of twenty-one. "And then, Luke, they'll be like ' _great,_ go away'! Or, even worse, he'll kick your ass for holding up the line. Then who's the one who'll be laughing?"

He frowns. Piper caught him off guard, like she always does. He hates having the wool pulled over his eyes, it's not fair, never was and never will be. "Maybe," he says slowly, rubbing his chin, his eyes brightening once more. "Or, maybe, whatever the guy's name is will be like, 'You're honest. I like that. Come inside. You're not twenty-one, but least you can act like one'!" He motions his hands outward, a smile on his face. So. Stupid.

Piper closes her eyes, counting to ten. All she knows if that she tries to engage, she'll dive into something she really, _really_ doesn't want to and this is not one of those times. No point in trying to argue with stupid. Luke is the definition of insanity, doing the same thing over and over and over again and somehow expecting to get different results. She rubs her forehead. He's causing her pain. Not good. "Luke, you know you don't have to be here, right? You could be in class or something."

"I know," Luke frowns, rubbing his neck. He looks away for a minute, he feels himself having caught staring and that's certainly not good for him or her when things between them soured somewhat because of Jason. For the whole world to stop and think about it for a moment, Piper McLean was Jason Grace's girlfriend, involuntarily being demoted to his ex-girlfriend with his death, and Luke Castellan having been Jason Grace's best friend... and somehow the blonde feels like he's still Jason's best friend. A beat passes between the two of them in the room and all that can be heard is Piper shifting on the beanbag and the ruffling of the beads inside. "Do... do you want me here?" he asks courageously.

"I don't know," she responds, still rubbing her forehead, because son of a bitch, she's now getting a headache that may or may not be because of him. "You can do whatever you want to, Luke. Go out and get a drink, shoot some hoops and then get caught by Mr. Solace... truthfully, I really don't care. I just don't want to be alone till Nico gets back."

"Okay," he assures her, coming around the desk, leaning in front of it, knocking the mug of glow sticks over which causes Piper to glare at him, Luke's neck flooding up to a violet color. "I'll stay," Luke says after righting the mug. "Till Nico comes. He'll understand why I was here."

"Will he?"

"Maybe."

Another rouse of silence passes between them. Luke catches himself staring, but good god this is wrong as Piper was his best friend's girlfriend and that's a code you don't cross, he very well knows this, but he still does. Piper is down right gorgeous, stunning in every inch and curve. Pasty white skin that glistens like reflective glass, two soft, sweet diamond eyes with dark, radiating auburn hair acting as the backdrop. Her body is slim, a girl's dream body, with curves that accentuate her physique so well. Piper knows she's gorgeous, but for once in her life, she tries not to say anything about it to anyone. She knows that Luke is staring at her again... fifteenth time this morning, but all she can do is shrug and say it's because of hormones. To break the silence, Luke grabs a toy off of Nico's desk, this weird looking raven.

"Hey, Pipes, check this out." he smiles his goofy grin in a way only he knows how to.

She turns, and scowls. She hates ravens. Why would their guidance counselor have one on his desk. "Luke, I'm really not in the mood."

He presses the button anyways, the cherry red button appearing on the side of the bird's beak, and the toy begins to rotate around in Luke's hand. It catches him off guard for a minute as he nearly drops it, then smiles again as the beak of the raven opens and out pops a voice full of sarcasm and shrillness. "I like to Cwarty!" it cries. Luke puts it back down as it runs through its little cycle, the raven kicking up its two feet and flapping its feathers while repeating the stupid message. He thinks the raven is trying to say 'I like to party', replacing part with caw. Hilarious.

Piper can feel her face breaking into a slight grin, so she deflects the momentary glimpse of happiness with a snarky comeback. "That is so stupid, Luke. Beyond stupid."

"Just trying to lighten the mood." Luke defends himself.

"It's still stupid." she crosses her arms. A frown breaks the smile, causing the blonde to stir, and he's now frowning back at her for some reason which bothers her tremendously, but doesn't say anything.

"Y'know, Piper, you can smile occasionally. It's not against the law or anything."

"I know," Piper repeats, and the frown turns into another scowl as she stands. For some reason he just irks her, irks her to all territories of heaven above and hell below. "Don't tell me what's okay!"

Luke raises an eyebrow. Jeez, her behavior has been changing so rapidly over the past week. "O- okay... Pipes-"

She turns her back to him, facing the door, and her auburn ponytail swings around catching him in the face. The blonde coughs, pulling a strand off his tongue. Yuck. Piper crosses her arms close to her chest, feeling suddenly cold. The world must hate her, this _school_ must hate her. All the lockers, all the lunches, all the students, all the teachers... this school is cursed against her. "You... you have no idea what I'm going through, Luke. I'm doing everything in this school dealing with Jason's death and it's being really stressful on me. You coming out and telling me what to do isn't helping either. This school feels as if Miss Popular wasn't enough and now there's fifty million things on my plate!" she yells, turning around to him.

He flinches, throwing his arms up, terrified. She could become a Medusa like monster when scary. Luke turns as white as a sheet. He really had no idea why she was going so... off kilter with everything. "I- I know, Piper-"

"All this stupid shit," Piper swears, and now Luke is really thrown off guard because Piper McLean is a prim and proper girl who does not swear even in the most obtuse cases. She rubs her forehead, getting another headache from her anger. "So much unnecessary tasks. I have to make a memorial page for Jason in the yearbook, which is weird because I'm not even part of Jason's _family_ , it should go to Thalia! A fondly remembered page on Facebook so everyone in the whole damn world can know about how my boyfriend died... there's the article in the newspaper that should've even be _going_ to me, and good lord it is a lot! And, Luke, you yourself haven't even accepted my email invitation yet to the funeral..." she whispers this last line and looks at the blonde with her appraising diamond eyes causing him to shiver.

"I haven't checked my email," he shrugs his shoulders weakly. He doesn't know exactly what she wants to hear, and perhaps that is in an issue, but he doesn't want to dwell on that currently. "I'll get around to it."

Her arms are still crossed, and Piper raises one eyebrow at him, this dead, cold look in her eyes that throws everything in Luke's mind out the window, because, damn, she looks super hot right now with that expression. "Why haven't you checked your email? You'd think-"

"It's because no one emails me," Luke shouts, throwing his hands up in the air. "I- I don't know what you want from me, Piper. I text people, or call them, but rarely do I ever email them. It's not 2000 anymore."

Piper rolls her eyes for what feels like the thirtieth time that morning, and all of them because of Luke. "Whatever," she picks at her nails, sitting down in the beanbag, all crushed and everything. "It's a lot of pressure being the it girl, when I don't _want_ to be the it girl. You understand what I mean?"

"I suppose." Should Luke tell her that she looks really, _really_ good when flustered?

"Everyone is reminding me of everything to do with Jason and I sort of just want to forget it all. Hard to move on." the brunette begins to bite on the inside of her cheek, finding a particular pattern in the beanbag chair to be very exquisite and interesting, it captures her attention tenfold.

"Yeah. I get it." Luke says, a warm smile on his face. He's honestly uncertain if he should rub her shoulder or not. That could cross into creepy, stalker like territory and he doesn't need that at this stage. He has too much on his mind, too much to deal with. Girl troubles shouldn't and if he stays his hand, wouldn't be one of them.

On the other side of the door comes a click, and the two of them in the room tense. Luke senses a single bead of sweat trickle down his forehead into his lap. This'll be awkward to explain to Nico if he enters, seeing a boy and a girl alone in an office without adult supervision while they haven't even done anything. Now, of course, they haven't, but it's a whole different story to the guidance counselor if something were to happen. Piper clenches the beanbag before letting go as a familiar, yet unwelcoming wave of long dark hair flows into the room.

Standing in the doorway is Thalia Grace, older but not really sister of Jason Grace. Thalia's long, ebony hair is up today, spiky and all pointy like a cactus. Her electrifying emerald eyes pierce at Luke and Piper as if they were criminals, causing both of them to shudder. She's back to smiling though, seeing the tension in the room. Thalia had a jean jacket thrown over her shoulders, adorning a simple black t-shirt and a pair of jeans to her sandaled feet. Very casual, more casual than usual.

"Hey." she says.

"Hey." Piper says back, not meeting her eyes.

"Thalia." Luke regards her, nodding, his eyes sparking some more intensity. He always found Thalia to be promising too, but it would be even worse if he went after her instead, due to being Jason's sister. Now _that's_ a line you wouldn't want to cross. Too many lines, and not enough time to separate them all from each other.

"Is this a party in the guidance department? Because I'm glad you all invited me." Thalia snarks to no one in particular, shutting the door, leaning up against it.

"Oh, yeah, it is the place to be." Luke matches her level, raising his head. He found it deep in his soul, perhaps instilled somewhat, that whatever responses Thalia exuded from her badass persona of Miss Toughie, he'd meet her halfway and fizzle out because she was too much for him to handle.

"Totally..." Piper rolls her eyes. Again.

Thalia eyes the two of them dead on, her gaze is sharp underneath all the eye shadow she's supporting, making her face feel as if its fifty pounds heavier. Yesterday afternoon, after 7th period, but before everyone got to leave, there was an assembly for Jason in the cafeteria, a little montage of the kid around campus with guest speakers by the student body and even a choir performance. Luke felt embarrassed about it, having to speak up on the kid's intelligence, and Thalia almost skipped it. She didn't need to be reminded every day of her dead brother, but it happens.

"So, that assembly yesterday? What'd you think?" Piper notices that Thalia is smacking on gum. Obnoxiously. "All sweet, right?"

"I thought it was nice." the brunette answers, but she's still not looking at Thalia in the eyes. Something about the raven haired girl intimidated her. The sharp opposite of Jason, rude and vicious to the core, yet she found herself being partly acquainted with her due to dating... well, her brother.

Thalia snorts. "Totally. I'm just sitting there, wanting to run away because of all the cheesiness. All the candles, and it combined everything Jason was about. Did I mention the candles? Because I find it funny our school did that... Jason always ranted on why he hated wax if someone was to listen... so, the candles were a stupid idea. There was people talking about him that he would have never heard of... and then we had more candles..."

"Yeah... they made me hold one when I spoke about him," Luke blushes, then his face darkens more as her gaze snaps to him like a predator. "I almost burned my hand."

"It was only somewhat sufferable at that point," she continues, smacking on her gum. "It got much worse later on. I'm sitting there, thinking, oh my god, they are doing the best tribute to my brother ever. The only thing that'd make it even better was if they sang _In the Arms of the Angel_ , y'know, compiling the senior choir on there and let them belt their hearts out. And... then oh my god, they did exactly that. All the verses and everything."

"It was stupid." Piper grimaces.

"I kinda like that song..." Luke shrugs, cowering once more under Thalia's glare, and this time Piper's is added to the mix. Not that he doesn't like the attention, certainly, but not when two pretty ladies are mad at you.

"Well, the choir sort of ruined it by not even being on tune," Thalia picks at her jacket, nodding her head up to them. "It's common knowledge that Piper has an appointment with Nico, so I get why she's here. But, you, you're a mystery."

"That dunce..." Piper shakes her head, muttering under her breath.

"I heard that!" the blonde snaps, then flushes, looking at the dark haired girl. "I lost my ID somewhere on campus. I've checked all seven of my classrooms, the gym locker room, my house, the bus... my locker... and I can't find it."

"So you think you lost it in here?"

"I was the second person Nico talked to after Jason died..." Luke states bluntly. "Right after you. I thought it'd be here, maybe somewhere in the beanbag or on his desk, but it wasn't there. Have no idea where else it could be."

Thalia rubs her chin. "I'm sorry? It must be hard. Maybe someone put it back in your locker this morning. And... you do realize that Mr. Solace is in charge of the lost and found, right? It also could be in his room now."

"Oh, really?" Luke's expression brightens, he straightens himself up some more, and then hops off the desk. "I'll go ask him right now, then! I'm missing gym and I have an A in the class, so nothing's really happening with me. I can miss it. Thanks, Thalia!" he calls, racing out of the door.

"You're welcome," she calls over her shoulder, yelling at Luke before he's down the hallway. "If it's in Mr. Solace's class, tell him it was all my idea!" Then, she turns to Piper, shuts the door, and rolls her eyes. "You'd think that Luke would know how this school works by now. We're all seniors and he sometimes forgets where the entrance to the building is..."

Piper feels cold and empty knowing that Luke is gone. Vanished, but not really. With him there, she has some form of security, a blockade to hide behind, and with Thalia, and _only_ Thalia, it's definitely cold and empty as there'll be no sympathy or niceties from the girl with the ripped jeans. "Why are you still-" she starts.

At the same time, Thalia opens her mouth to speak. "What time is your-" she starts as well, then narrows her eyes at the fact they both spoke. In her blood, there's a suffused fire that burns every time she sees the weeping heroine of the school, Miss Piper McLean, and everyone should hate her for the fact that she's a total bitch and that everyone knows it. _Or_ should know it at the very least.

"Sorry, go ahead." Piper rubs her shoulder innocuously. Why can't the other girl just leave her alone, leave her alone to drown in the silence of awkwardness stemming from the walls which clearly just wants to swallow her whole.

"What time is your appointment?" Thalia asks, opening her bright eyes, just so she can let the brunette know that honestly doesn't give a flying fuck what her answer is.

"Right now... actually," Piper frowns. "Nico is supposed to be here, but I imagine he's talking with Mr. Solace or another one of the teachers who are still doing their job."

"Were you guys just going through his shit, then?" the other girl gestures to the desk, noticing the highlighters and the raven. Perplexed, she walks over to the raven, and picks it up. "Seems kinda rude to be going through his private stuff."

"Just Luke was doing that," the brunette frowns, anger surmounting in her veins. How dare Thalia accuse her of something like that. What. A. Total. Bitch! She frowns again at seeing Thalia has picked up the raven, going towards the red button. "Don't... I wouldn't touch that-"

Too late. The raven is placed back on the desk and starts to waddle off and it crashes against the floor. The girls both wince at the sound of shattering plastic, a black chip flying out and hitting the door with a soft _plink._ Thalia blinks, processing everything, and then pulls all of her extensive knowledge at the event to say, "It sings..."

"Yeah, Luke showed it to me. He's pretty cute, right?" Piper smiles to herself.

Thalia furrows her eyebrows, motioning her thumb back at the door. "Who? Luke Castellan?"

"No..." Piper's cheeks burn a flourishing violet. Damn her, she meant the blonde boy with all the intention in the world, but of course the sister of Grace just has to be a bitch and stick it to her that she shouldn't think anyone else is cute but her gorgeous brother, Jason. "That wasn't I meant. The- the raven."

The dark haired girl shakes her head in dissention, seeing right through Piper as if she was glass. Transparent, not made of much... glass. "It's good to see you doing better. Nice, actually." Thalia is genuine, but can tell that her voice comes across as bitter, snarky, and rude, which is apparent by Piper's nose scrunching up as if the brunette smelled a terrible smell that caused her nostrils to deteriorate.

"What do you mean?" God, she's as dumb as a doornail.

Thalia shrugs. "I don't know, Piper. Whatever you want it to mean. Just... the last few times I've seen you, you either excused yourself to go to the restroom or cried in the middle of class causing Mr. Solace to pat you on the back awkwardly or something creepy like that. Good to see that you've stopped crying."

Piper is taken aback by this, trying to process the few statements being made. The girl in ripped jeans and sandals should not be three steps ahead of her. _She's_ the smart one, Piper McLean is the popular girl of the school who gets to do whatever she wants without getting called you. "Oh... I really, honestly haven't _stopped_ crying yet. It's going to happen when I'm content."

"You going to English tomorrow? Mr. Solace has a substitute for us today I'm told, so there's no reason to be in class. But he's back tomorrow and has this super special assignment that I think is going to be the most stupid thing ever, so I can't wait." Thalia says this all in one quick breath, using much of her oxygen up in a superfluous take, looking content with herself.

"I don't know. I was thinking of getting trauma leave today and tomorrow, but I'd be bored at home if I did... so, I don't know," Piper shrugs her shoulders. "Then again, it's boring here at school, too."

"I can agree with that one," Thalia chuckles, sitting on the desk in a fashion remotely similar to that of how Luke did too. "I'll be going tomorrow, even though I probably won't do the assignment simply because he's actually at least doing something with all of us. Every other teacher has been acting like complete pansies, pussyfooting around all these other topics, while lightly touching up on Jason. I mean, god, Pipes, if you'd hear some of these teachers-"

"I _have_ heard them." Piper corrects, but her deflection gets lost in the soapbox rant of Thalia Grace like usual.

"Awesome having this school be totally freaked out right now, it's like I can do almost anything. Like, I was in Art yesterday and gave Mr. Underwood a conniption. We were supposed to paint this perspective landscape or something stupid like that, but I took a more artistic and abstract route with painting a heart. All bloody and red with tendrils of black swooping off of it and everything!" Thalia's eyes emblazon themselves with glee. "It had flames and darkness and stuff... totally made me look unstable and unable to handle emotion. He gave me an A."

"Good for you," Piper says, and secretly she's wanting to take that painting and rip it apart so much. "I missed it. Don't have Art."

"Drama with Mrs. Beauregard was even better," Thalia's entire face lights up at this revelation. "We're doing this like, improv role-playing thing with like half the class, and it's supposed to be funny as improv is normally very comedic and everything. Well, there's this one scene we're acting out, me and that Leo Valdez kid who I think secretly has a crush on that one girl Calypso. Anyways, we're in charge of this robotic farm with robotic chickens, cows, and other things. Lasers and invisible screens and it's all futuristic which is absolutely badass. I'm the farmer's wife, which is Leo, and he's trying to sell this robotic goat that we don't need anymore. Out of nowhere, I cry, 'No! We need this fucking robot goat for the robot farm, it'll die if we don't keep the fucking goat'! And then I started crying. Not, like, real tears, but I collapsed onto the stage and hid my face so it looked like I was crying. Loved every single second of it. Euphoric. Everyone in class got really quiet, Leo had stepped back from me out of terror, and it's so quiet you can hear a pin drop somewhere if you tried hearing hard enough. I was thinking, holy shit... how long can I stay like this? Want to take a guess?" she opines, leaning forward, smiling with cruelty.

"How long?" the brunette gives a half shrug, but Piper is really trying to suppress her giggle as it makes her laugh so much.

"Two and a half minutes," Thalia's grin is triumphant as if she's won the lottery or something stupid. "Dead silence, and it is totally awkward which was exactly my intention. Finally, after some student prompting Mrs. Beauregard to do something, you hear her clicking of her heels against the tile as she walked over to me and she started rubbing my back. It got me to look up, because holy shit, it worked! I look and she's got real tears in her eyes, completely taken by my fabulous throwing of emotion out to the crowd. Now, I'm a straight A student," Thalia laughs to herself, cackling proudly. She takes a minute to get herself together, her head thrown back as she laughs and laughs. When the dark haired girl finally meets her composure, she brings her gaze back to Piper and frowns immediately, seeing that she's not laughing. "Hey... you aren't laughing."

Piper's face is one of awkward composure as she's trying to suppress the laugh before it turns her purple. "No, I am, it's just-" she barely makes out.

"No, you're not. You aren't _laughing_ , like laughing type of laughing." Thalia enunciates each word with a heavy impression of her fingers.

"You're brave to act like that." Piper says, trying to beat around the bush with something at least somewhat useful.

"I can only imagine what you're thinking," the other girl wonders aloud after examining the brunette's face momentarily, her fist clenching and unclenching at every word. "You probably think I should just go home and let me actually cry, cry for real or something over my dead brother. I mean, everyone else is so traumatized at Jason dying when they weren't even of kin, friends, or a significant other. All bullshit, really. They think they all want to be friends of Jason, when he never even knew them. Am I right?"

A pause between them, in which Piper decides what to exactly say as this can be either amazing to their already destroyed friendship or it'll wreck them beyond comparison. "No... Thalia, you're right. You're absolutely _fucking_ right." she knows she just swore again, but she really doesn't care right now, because for once her least favorite person on the planet is speaking some sense into the world and is hitting the bulls-eye without complication.

"Still deciding about trauma leave?"

"I don't know... like I said, it'll be a boring day at each place I go."

"You're younger than Jason, right?" Piper asks after a moment silence.

"I'm older. Contrary to popular belief," Thalia answers. "Just by a few minutes."

"He got to be in the same grade as you?"

"Usually how it works. He got the smarts, I got the looks."

" _Yeah... totally not. He got the looks and the smarts,_ " Piper thinks to herself, then aloud. "Your brother was super smart."

"Yeah... I know," Thalia picks at the desk, looks down at her sandaled feet, then back at Piper, as if she's deciding whether or not anything she says from here on out will have any affect. "Maybe... y'know, I used to be upset with who I was, but now I don't honestly care."

"What do you mean?"

A sigh comes from the dark haired girl. "I really have no idea, Pipes. I used to think I was a bastard child, because we always had Jason on the side to act as the good guy, the god from the heavens with his stunning blonde hair, bright blue eyes, his smile... god, he was perfect, right? And I'm not..."

"No one said that. No one _says_ that." Piper stands up, alarmed. Why would Thalia of all people be going on about this? God, hearing what she was saying was downright horrible.

"I don't want your sympathy," Thalia snarls. She didn't mean for it to come out so sharply, but sometimes she thinks the brunette cares too much for other people, like jeez, get your own skin and let other people die if they wanted to. "Just, be content with yourself, okay, Pipes? I understand that you're busy with everything for my brother and I just want you to relax like I am. Take some joy in everyone taking attention to you. You're a nice girl, have a lot of friends, had a good boyfriend in my brother, and everyone's there for you."

Piper runs into a brick wall, figuratively with this statement. Was Thalia Grace nice to her? What the hell was the world coming to? What the hell _is_ the world coming to, rather, would be a better question. She bites down on her lip, drawing blood. Instead of the typical statement she'd say in that stead along the lines of _Don't be so modest of me, please_ , she blurts, "How's your mother?"

"Odd question..."

"Oh. Sorry. I just don't know what to really ask at the moment. How is she? On a scale of like... bad... to really bad."

"On a _scale_ of how bad she feels?" Thalia yelps in anger. "Jesus, Piper! Do you even hear yourself? What type of fucking question is that! I don't know how my mother is, okay? She won't talk to me. Maybe a five or a six... jeez, Pipes, I have no idea! What's a five or six on _your_ scale, Piper? Breaking a heel? Getting a really bad zit?"

Whatever feelings of sympathy Piper had for her boyfriend's sister evaporate at the sharpness coming out of Thalia's mouth, and the brunette clenches her hands into fists. "Why are... Thalia, there's no need to get mad at me."

"I'm not. Just wondering why my mother's health is important to you."

"I love your mom. Are you kidding?" Piper feels her rolling her eyes and she really needs to stop doing that. Has to be some sort of nervous tick. "She got me that awesome sweater for Christmas as a gift with me dating Jason for over a year. She's super sweet."

"You love her because she bought you a sweater?" Thalia blinks at her, frowning, putting her hands spread out on the desk, open to all suggestions on why the hell a sweater matters at the end of the day.

"Don't twist my words around. I didn't say that."

"If you loved my mother so much, Piper, you could've called our house this week. You could have came by when Jason was still alive when he was working on English assignments to get them done together. But... wait, you didn't do that. You stayed away like we were parasitic."

"That's not why-" Piper starts to defend herself, but Thalia will not have it.

"Then tell me. I'm beyond enlightened. Because, I find it funny, Pipes... I don't remember the last time you ever have come over to my house?" Thalia is glaring, and she knows this, so she makes the glare sharper and more accusatory.

"Why is that so funny to you?"

"I don't know. Maybe it isn't funny," Thalia balks. "You're just a funny person."

Piper rolls up her sleeves, but she isn't preparing to scrap, as she isn't that type of girl. "Thalia, if you really want to know why I never came over, I'll tell you. Jason liked coming over to my house. That's why I didn't come over. He always requested we hang out at my house, for he loved my father's cooking. If he came to my house, we'd have my dad trusting us so we could _actually_ _do stuff together_." She says the last part of her sentence pointedly, and gets some sort of euphoric pleasure at Thalia's aghast expression.

"I didn't want to hear that. That's too weird."

"You asked." Piper repeats.

"It should be weird," Thalia snaps back. "I don't need to hear about my brother's girlfriend telling me they've had sex. Especially since he's dead."

"You asked."

Thalia stops momentarily, frowning, then straightens herself, walking to the door of the guidance office. She's had enough of the brunette, of the prissy Piper McLean who needs a good knock to the teeth with her ignorant comments, and perhaps a kick in the vagina for spraying so much damn perfume around her. You don't need to actually become a flower bed. "Were you still dating Jason when he died?"

Piper's words get caught in her throat at the question, catching her off guard. "Of course I was! Thalia... you don't have to ask me that."

The other girl considers her words, and she knows, she knows it deep in her heart that she's not lying. It sets her heart at ease for a moment. Thalia's hand eclipses the doorknob. "Thanks for letting me know that, Pipes."

Piper makes her way back to the beanbag, slouching into it visibly. "Why?"

Thalia makes sure to look at her when she answers, to get the full, riveting, chilling effect. "Because now I know that you're not the horrible person I thought you were."

She doesn't give Piper McLean a second to respond, Thalia is out the door and down the hallway, wiping away at the tears now forming in her eyes. She loves and hates this school, and that damn Piper McLean is part of it.

* * *

 **Wow... that was exhausting. Well, there we are guys! That was Chapter #3: Separation. I wrote all of this, all 6.7k in one sitting and now my legs are hurting so much, surprisingly not my fingers. This'll be one of two chapters without Will in it, so we're going to get our great blonde English teacher back next chapter, which I'm happy about. Alright... out of the three teens introduced in this chapter, who's the one you liked the most? Personally I have to say Luke as a character, but Thalia's attitude sells it for me most of the time which is why I gave her this type of character and persona, she's punk, she's abusive with her words, and she doesn't take bullshit. Please review and let me know what you thought! Your advice helps me so much, you have no idea. I hope to see you all again with Chapter #4: Division. I am planning on having this story done and over with in not much time, I'm hoping to get my last chapter out around the end of the month so I can go onto other projects, but still super happy with how this one is turning out, partly because of you all. I hope (I say that four letter word a lot, I realize. Hope. H-O-P-E... need a new one, any suggestions) you all have an amazing day, and thank you for reading. I love you all! Bye!**

 **~ Paradigm**


	4. Chapter 4: Divide

**Hey everyone, Paradigm of Writing here with a brand new chapter of Cardinal Stasis, #4: Divide. This one will be a doozy, I've got quite a lot planned and I'm super excited for it, like I always am. I realize that this story is garnering some negative attention (I've had to delete a few guest reviews that were just... too aggressive.) I'm sorry if you don't like how I'm writing these characters, but this is an AU and I'm using artistic license to write them in a different way. Yes, Will is too aggressive, yes Thalia is a massive bitch, Piper is definitely different, Luke is different... I know, and they're gonna be like that as that's who I wanted to use. For those who are reading and liking it, thank you for letting me know in your PM's, they mean a lot. I do know that I can never appease everyone, so appeasing just one is a success. Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

The sun lights amorous shadows on the tiled floor of Will's classroom as the haggard blonde walks in to teach. He rubs his face a few times because he's so damn tired of not being able to sleep. Last night, he dreamt of him. Of Jason. He dreamed about the boy's blue backpack, his nice smile, his gentle and soft hands and it is killing him that this is how he's remembering the dead. Of wishing he could've spent one last minute with him before the boy died. Will throws his briefcase on his desk, knocking over a container holding pencils and highlighters which tumble to the floor in a tumultuous crash. He winces, running a hand through his hair. He does not need this so early in the morning. Will reaches down to pick them up but decides against it. The teacher will just knock them over again someday. He takes a moment to appreciate the sunrise, the halcyon streams of light shooting out in various directions and it rests on him, giving a moment of calm.

He is surprised that of all the teachers who have excuses to leave and take a few days, it should be him. But he's not doing that. Will Solace is teaching an AP Literature course because he feels compelled to do so. It's the right thing to do, to not bail out on the few students who show up every period because they are supposed to. That's how it is meant to be done, and it is rightfully so.

Will leans into the window, pressing his forehead against the cool glass while his breath mists up the reflective surface. He runs a few fingers down it, Jason's reflection peering out in the horizon. Will hasn't slept. He needs sleep. He is so invested in the sunrise that he doesn't hear a knock from the other side of his classroom from Nico. The guidance counselor's cheery face is a even brighter than usual, but a frown is plastered on his face as he takes in his colleague's dismayed and transfixed state. He tries for the handle, surprised somewhat to see it open.

Nico steps in, closing the door. The closing is a little bit too loud for his liking, causing Will to jump over by the window. The blonde takes a moment to catch his breath before regaining his composure, swallowing, a shutting of the eyes, and then opening them again. The raven haired male grins sheepishly. "Hey, I'm sorry-"

"You can't just do that to me, Nico." Will pinches the bridge of his nose.

"Didn't mean to interrupt your staring or whatever..." Nico states, and the teacher notices that there's once again that bright blue backpack over his shoulder, the same one, the same one as Jason Grace's, except it isn't the same one. He _knows_ it isn't the same one, but it reminds him of it.

"I wasn't staring." he tries to protest, throwing his hand up but he loses the meaning and groans.

Nico kicks at the floor, looking down at his shoes somewhat ashamedly. "Saw you through the door so captured by something so I just wanted to stop by and check up on you. Not _check_ up on you or anything... but just say... hello." the raven haired male shuts up wisely in his explanation at Will's glare. He really isn't helping the situation here, and he knows it, but it's instilled in his soul to continue making things awkward as it is what he does and there's nothing to stop him doing it.

Will sighs, resigning for something even remotely good to say. "Thanks. I guess I needed it. Would be weird for the students to walk in and see that," he scratches his neck. "I'm just... overwhelmed. Tired. Work this morning, god... the drive here sucked so badly and-"

"I understand. Life is difficult. Don't need to try and explain anything."

"May I get organized?"

"Of course." Nico steps back.

Will walks to his briefcase, flipping it open quickly. The other male catches something in the case that gets his attention, and his face immediately pales. Rope? A bundle of rope... in a suitcase? What the hell? The blonde removes a few folders from the case, placing it against the side of his desk. Will grabs a pen, writes something on the folder, walks around to the back of the desk, flipping open his laptop, turning it on. Nico watches, now stuck on the rope in the briefcase, but holds his lips still. The two lock eyes for a minute, Nico smiles back all big and warm, and then Will smiles back, his heart fluttering somewhat. He hasn't had anyone look at him like that in a long time.

"Do you mind getting us some coffee?" Will asks after a minute of the two of them just smiling. It felt nice, it feels... good.

"Ah... no thanks," Nico dissents, waving his hand back and forth dismissively. "I was up all night drinking Red Bull. Works wonder for insomniacs. You got an idea of how much sleep I got?"

"How much?" the blonde teacher shakes his head, trying to clear himself of a memory for a moment, typing his password into the computer, waiting for it to load.

"Zero point zero hours. Only reason I'm still standing is..." the guidance counselor pauses for a moment, frowning. "Actually, I have _no_ idea why I'm even up. Freak miracle of God or something."

Will shakes his head again. The lines start to appear on the screen, and he steps back, blinking rapidly. No, the booze was appearing that quickly? No... that can't be true. "That much?" he says distractedly, looking around for something.

"Yep," Nico nods, gripping the edge of a student's desk. "How about you? Get a good night's rest or did you stay up reading dreadful essays?"

The teacher shakes off the question, flipping frantically through his briefcase which he forgets to turn around, giving the raven haired male another glimpse at the coils of rope. Alarm rises in the other man's mind, but he needs to keep his mouth shut. Will flips his briefcase upside down, but nothing falls out. He remembers how he glued everything into the briefcase that morning, no wonder nothing will fall out. Stupid. No pills. Nothing. "You- you don't have..." Will trails off, so distracted that it hurts.

"Have what? I don't know what you're trying to tell me."

"Advil or a painkiller? Got this headache and-" Will tries to explain, collapsing into his chair exhausted. God, this job is killing him. Nico _is_ killing him for lords sake.

"No, I don't. Nurse's office won't either. We're not allowed to have that stuff, remember?" Nico places his hand on the desk, leaning into the blonde's personal space, causing Will to itch. "You alright?"

"I'm fine. I just need... the painkiller. Or a cup of coffee."

"I'll make sure to get the coffee." Nico assures.

Will shakes his read rapidly, a smile gracing his lips. "That'll be wonderful, thank you." Due to his vigorous movement, a strand comes loose, causing the guidance counselor to smile. Nico likes seeing Will get all out of position so he can put him back together again. Like a puzzle that'll always have a missing piece and there's nothing anyone could do to replace it. Weird analogy, but he thinks it works.

"Oh, you..." the guidance counselor says, running a thin finger along the edge of the desk.

"What?" Will frowns. He hates being the center of attention, but not knowing why he is the center of attention. He likes things being orderly, it's his way of having everything checked and put together perfectly.

"You got... there's a... here..." Nico sighs, reaching across the desk, patting and putting Will's loose strand of hair back in place. The blonde shivers visibly at the gentle touch, it has been too long since someone has touched him in any manner other than cruelty, and it means a lot coming from the guidance counselor, means so much. Nico leans back, smiling at his work.

"Thank you."

"All ready for prom."

"Want to be my date?" the teacher quips, eyeing him with a laugh. Wow... Will stops and realizes he just laughed. It's been awhile since he's ever laughed.

"I don't need people talking about me. Too many people talk about me," Nico jokes along, but notices the souring of the teacher's expression which stings at his heart somewhat. He shift somewhat, the backpack falling to one shoulder. It reminds him of something. "Oh! I bet you're just wondering what's in this backpack, right?"

"No, I wasn't." Will responds truthfully. That was one thing that irritates him with knowing Nico Di Angelo for so many years. The boy, _guy_ , the blonde corrects himself knowingly, goes around and expects that everyone wishes to know his intentions. Life shouldn't work that way, and it doesn't so it is annoying when the counselor does it so often and there's much that irritates him now because of it. Will wants to reach across the desk and shake the man so hard that he forgets what he was going on.

"Be prepared for it!" Nico says triumphantly, zipping open the backpack and dumping its contents on the desk. Collections of paper fall out of the backpack, sliding to the desk and some falling to the floor like feathers. Will grabs one, seeing a date of a couple years ago.

"Are these old essays for my class?"

"Yep!"

"Why did you keep these?"

"I had to have all of them for an English course in college, which was just last year... haven't gotten around to throwing them away," Nico says, but he's lying to Will. In truth, he did it because he still sometime glances over the writing that his old English teacher would leave on the papers, little comments and such in a fancy purple ink pen handwriting that had the swoops of the g's and y's, and sometimes little smiley faces to represent he did a good job. Nico Di Angelo likes to brag in saying to some of the other teachers on campus that he was Will Solace's favorite his year. Maybe... just maybe he still is, in a whole different way.

Will looks at his former student, now the adult he's morphed into, and there's a smile on his lips, a somewhat warm feeling fluttering in his heart that he kept the old essays, and there had to be a bullshit reason as to why. "It's commitment. Your writing was excellent. _Is_ excellent, I should say."

"Too much credit," Nico blushes. "You were the one to put me on the right path?"

"I'm not so sure I'd call it that, but you may if you'd like."

"I find myself from time to time going through them and reading what you wrote. I particularly like the one where you mentioned your own writing experiences, and the like."

"Oh, that paper!" Will cries suddenly, shifting upward. "I remember that assignment. To look at the world and imagine where you'd be in twenty years from now. It was a good, introspective paper from you. I remember that one all too well. Gave you a 100."

Nico grabs that particular essay from the pile on the desk, flipping to the last page, reading his last quote. "I feel as if the world will end tomorrow, and here I am writing your stupid, great assignment. Thanks, Mr. Solace, for this assignment. I want to say and perhaps think that this'll be me, writing about the issues in the world and more. Enjoy whatever else I may do."

"And what did I say to that?"

He scans the bottom of the paper, and there is a long paragraph written there, in the swirly purple ink. "God, Nico Di Angelo, you really want me to give you a bad grade on this, huh? I can't do that. It's good. _You're_ a good writer, and don't forget that. Loved the essay, love your work, and I can't wait to see how you'll do on that AP exam. Your teacher, Will Solace."

"It was like a teacher's _Chicken Soup for the Soul_ type of response, I think." Will says, spinning around in his chair with an exalted laugh. The paper brings memories to him of when he was younger, six years younger... maybe even further and there were oil spills covering his driveway and he had that same briefcase except it was a lot heavier. A women who stands on his porch, smiling as he passes, and that's all he likes to think about in his old life, and till Jason Grace walks into his class on that one day, does it make everything worse.

Nico places the paper back, stuffing them into his backpack, scoffing. "You know..." he starts.

"What?" this breaks the concentrating stare plastered along the blonde's face.

"Did you write comments like that for everyone?"

"Why do you ask?"

"I'm just asking." Nico shrugs.

"Am I going to offend you if I say otherwise?"

"No... just curious."

Will pulls a pen out of the container by his computer, clicking the ball. "Yeah, always a gave paragraph or so to every student. Some were nicer than others, as we had good students in your year. However, I don't do that anymore. Gets me attached to the students and that's not right. I have to care about you all, but in a different way, you know?"

"How long would it take you to do that?"

"Not long."

"Lying to me?"

"You just don't want to believe me, do you?" Will raises a tan eyebrow. This side of Nico was odd.

Nico shrugs. "You're hard to figure out, is all. I'm trying to get a gauge of you."

"And why is that?"

The guidance counselor stops his breathing momentarily. This got serious too fast. He bites down on his lip, looking out the window. Nico is afraid to say that he cares for Will's wellbeing a little bit too much in a non healthy way. The reason why he continues to drink Red Bull and stay up is because he's thinking of the blonde teacher and how he's doing, that's what he does and will continue to do as long as things continue going the way they will. How can he just spurt things out like that? Issue is, you can't. You can't just do things like that. It's not healthy.

"I've been reading..." Nico trails off.

"I have a hard time believing that."

"Well, I have been. Interpretations of dreams and things like that, trauma and dramatic events that led to tragedies..." the raven haired male trails off, causing Will to blanch, the blonde stands and goes back to the windows. He knows where this is going, and he really, _really_ doesn't like where it is going. "I don't know how I am around you in the terms of swearing, but I'm going to outright say it. You're fucking scaring me."

Will stops, turning around. "Why am I doing that to you?"

"Did you sleep here last night? Were you up all night, _here_ , which is why your trip here sucked because you didn't even take a trip to school?"

"No! What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Will balks, walking up to Nico, hands curled into fists. What was his problem? What gave him the right to demand stuff of that degree? Was he is personal shrink? No, nowhere, _anywhere_ , did it say that Nico Di Angelo is Will Solace's therapist, so this personal and private intrusion was starting to hurt. It is hurting him, the blonde teacher feels pained at realizing that, but it is going to help him somehow.

"Nothing-" Nico flinches.

"You can't just ask me that and not have a reason for-"

"I saw you sleeping here last night, after the bell rang. You must've been dreaming or something because I had stopped in the doorway, contemplating whether or not to go in. You had awoken, all startled and stuff which freaked me out beyond words, and God, it was terrifying, Will."

"So?"

"It's going to be none of my business?" Nico suggests weakly, running a hand through his hair.

"It shouldn't be your business, that is correct." Will snaps.

"But..." the guidance counselor is not giving up on his favorite person in the entire world like this, this is not going to happen in a way where Will resigns himself to secrecy and lets everything fall apart while there are people who can help him. "Actually, Will, it is sort of my business. Professional to another professional. I'm trying to look out for the students, and it is no unknown secret that the kids all look up to you, you're a role model whether or not you want to be. If you're here... having nightmares, and I know you said it was what's been troubling you ever since the assembly, you've been thinking about Jason! That's not good, Will. Things like that shouldn't be happening, they shouldn't be happening and you know that. If you just dreamed about what you've been last thinking about, I'd be alright. Jets, super hot models, even me, or whatever... but not Jason."

Will takes all of this in, his face grimacing into a scowl, as he says, "Okay. Good point."

"Thank you for at least seeing that."

"So... I'm a bit shaken up after what's happened? Don't I have the right to be?" Will's voice is hinting at a challenge, and he's even bucking up his chin to seem a little bit more impressive and dominating, but Nico simply raises an eyebrow back at him. No, this won't work, no way in hell. "It's natural, Nico."

"For you to be dreaming about Jason?" Nico asks, his face giving the signal that this isn't normal behavior.

"No..." Will rubs his shoulder innocuously, uncomfortable. The bell felt like it rang, why aren't there any students coming into his classroom yet? Have they all skipped or what?

"What was the last dream you had about?"

"I can't do this-"

"It's important, Will," Nico urges, placing a hand on the teacher's shoulder. They both look into each other's eyes, and the raven haired male has a deep urge resting in him to just kiss the blonde and let everything dissolve, and it'd be just the two of them clinging on to flimsy sheets that smell of lavender in a drowning green light under amber curtains that hide the sun. "Talking about it helps you more than you think."

The teacher removes himself from the other's grip, walking to his desk, running a hand through his hair because he's so tired of all the mind games going on, but there's got to be a reason to the madness plaguing him, the darkness that follows his steps. "It's nothing, okay? Nico, I've just been... I've been having that afternoon replay in my head over and over again. With the same ending. Last time I saw him."

"Jason?"

"Yes."

"Okay," A pause. "Have you had this dream more than once?"

"Every day. Sometimes multiple times a day..." Will answers, and now he really wants that stupid cup of coffee. Perhaps it'll act as a placebo to his tiredness and cause everything to melt away. This sucks.

"Hmm..." Nico rubs his chin.

The blonde's response feels general and almost instinctual, but it gives him comfort, and it gives him so much warmth. "I'm fine."

"I know. But, would you like to talk some more about this? I can't pressure you, but it'll help."

"No," Will says, sighing. He checks the clock on the back wall, opens his mouth to answer, but is cut off by the ringing of the morning bell. Students will be arriving shortly, they can't continue to have this conversation, not now. "But, what we can do is let the students get to class right now. It'll be for the best, Nico. I got to finish getting everything together."

Nico rubs his cheeks some, adding color to his pallid face. Will watches as the guidance counselor reach down and grab the bright blue backpack, and the twitching of his eyes returns. Screw this. Screw it. The raven haired male sighs, he continues to sigh as he examines the classroom and realizes it feels so empty, and Will must be so lonely to have to wallow around in this depressing filth all the time. "I'm sorry for bugging you, Will. I'm sorry for seeming like I'm so intrusive and all, but I care about you. I am going to be in the teacher's lounge pretty much all day except for lunch, so I'll get you a cup of coffee after first, if you can manage. Just know that now I am no longer a student of yours, I'm your equal and you can come to me for anything. I hope I can do the same, too."

"Don't worry, there's nothing wrong with that type of friendship." Will says, watching the contentment go on the man's face. He catches himself staring, but not in the lovey dove way or anything.

"What?"

"I'm just looking at you," the blonde responds. "You've grown up. Grown up a lot, actually. Works out rather nice, seeing you do things for yourself."

"Well, I'm glad I can be of help to you."

The late bell rings, causing Will to glance up at the ceiling with equal levels of anticipation and nervousness for the day to begin. "You should-" he starts.

"Go, yeah, I'm leaving," Nico says hurriedly, staring to walk for the door. The raven haired male has one foot in the classroom, one in the hallway, which causes Will's heart to hammer because that's how he left Jason when they spoke last, lord the man needs to get off that particular tile. The twitch in his eye returns, but it interrupts itself as he tries listening to Nico finish talking. "If you need to talk, Will, I'm free this afternoon. I don't know if you'd like to talk to me at all about this whole thing, or maybe with someone who has a little bit more professional knowledge... but I'm out there. Just in case."

"Thank you. I mean it too."

"Thanks, but a no thanks, right?"

Will's lips press themselves into a firm frown. "No, actually, not at all. I'll- I'll stop by sometime."

"How about after school today? I could order a pizza from the front, and you can lie down on the floor and act like this is a session by a Freud or something." Nico suggests.

"I'll think about it. Which more than likely means that I'll show up." Will answers.

"If you're going to stay late for grading, you have to eat. I'll make sure it goes on my tab and everything."

"I don't need you to-"

"Don't insult me like that, Will," Nico says gently, stepping back into the classroom. "I'm trying to buy you a pizza! How many guys in the world can say that someone else will do that for them? I mean, I'm your best friend and all..."

"Are you, really?"

"Well..."

"I'm pulling your leg. Where'd you get the pizza from?" Will asks, a smile creeping at his lips.

"Probably from the Stoll's. They make the thin crust pepperoni pizza that is to die for, and you know it too."

Will nods, and now he's grinning because, good lord, the pizza from the Stoll brother pizza company is heaven in a slice on a plate. "Sounds good. I'll be there."

Nico returns the empathetic gesture, nodding. "Okay! Sounds good!" the raven haired man does a small jump in the air that almost looks super childish and gay, but because it is Nico Di Angelo, no one cares.

The blonde waits for the man to disappear around the corner till he goes back to the front of his desk, leaning up against it. He tilts his head back, trying to pitch puzzle pieces together in the roof. This is a fun thing to do in passing the time, he likes it. Jason's face flickers by for a moment, and then he stops, clutching his head because he never got the painkiller. He shakes his head, and freezes, someone else is standing in the doorway.

Thalia Grace. And oh, does she look freaked out.

Will swallows.

This won't be good.

* * *

 **Ah there we are guys, Chapter #4 of Cardinal Stasis! I was originally going to have this chapter, Divide, be a lot longer, but I realize that it'll just be too much for me to type and it's getting super late, like in twenty minutes it's going to be Sunday and no longer Saturday meaning this needs to get posted ASAP. Nothing like late night posting. Looks like I'm adding an extra chapter to this story, so, with #5, we'll continue along with how this scene was supposed to go, full of bitterness and now the teen trio of Thalia, Luke, and Piper will return. Thank you for reading, and we shall get Chapter #5: Perjury, out soon enough, whenever my fingers relax from all this typing as I'm a busy bee. Please review and let me know what you thought, I'm still intrigued in where you all think this is going. I love you all so much! Have an amazing day! Bye!**

 **~ Paradigm**


	5. Chapter 5: Perjury

**Hey everyone, Paradigm of Writing here with a brand new chapter of Cardinal Stasis, #5: Perjury. It's been awhile since I've last updated this story, I know, but I've been super busy. Actually, for the next three updates, they're going to be for this story, which I'm striving to get finished by the 26th, but I can perhaps manage pushing it back somewhat, maybe. Last chapter was just catching up on Will and Nico, but this one is going to have everything get thrown down, and I am making some roundabout changes to the story. I hope you at the very least appreciate them, though you do not have to like them. I'm excited for the rest of this story after this chapter, but I digress. Thanks to everyone who's been reading so far, it means a lot having support and critics and the like, I don't personally believe anyone ever gets enough criticism. Enjoy! And, P.S, there's some swearing in this one, mainly well... shit, and the f word, though the latter is used more sparingly.**

* * *

Will waves halfheartedly at Thalia, who's stuck in the doorway. He notices she's chewing gum. The girl is always chewing gum. The dark haired girl stands straight up, tired of leaning against the side of the door entrance. Her hair was in a long ponytail, highlighting her more pale complexion. She has high heels on, stocky black leggings, while a plaid jacket wraps itself around her waist, complementing the simple tank top hiding her 'ladies'. She steps into the classroom gallantly.

"So, you and Nico actually hang out after school together and stuff?" Thalia asks, drawing out the enunciation of _hang_ much longer she needs to, but because it is Thalia Grace, no one cares, and Will is certainly not about to start with her of all people.

The blonde teacher blushes heavily at her words, and from the way she dragged out the particular word of hang, it seems to him she meant more than just getting pizza and talking. She means one of them forcing the other against the table and screwing their brains out type of hanging out. Will pulls at the collar of his neck. This is bothering him just slightly. "Not usually, no. We were just going to have some pizza, I was going to stop by this afternoon and talk."

"Oh," she smiles, her eyes lighting up. "Can I come?"

He tilts his head to the side. Will Solace is beyond tired this morning, from the fact he had Nico literally help dress him and everything, so the blonde is unsure whether or not Thalia Grace is being serious, as the raven haired girl is not known around school for being serious with anything. "Well..." he trails off.

Her laugh is gentle, putting Will at ease. "I'm kidding. A kid can't just infringe on adults like that, I get it. I'm honestly just looking for an excuse not to go home today. Jason's death is really, well, it sucks."

Something flickers over Will's face and he grips the backside of the desk. He can see the resemblance in Thalia to Jason, the hook of the nose, the slightly tilted smile, and now there is blood running down her face in a hallucination. Will goes completely white, and he turns around, going to the board, grabbing a dry erase marker and writing out the word _Hamlet_ , in the bright red marker. He blanches, and erases that, writing it out in blue instead. Something Nico said earlier passes over him. " _Blue is a sympathetic color, like the ocean_." Again, bullshit.

"I can imagine that your family is having a pretty tough time." he says, not looking at her.

"Yeah, my mom's just like-" Thalia starts, then blinks. "You've met my mom, right?" the girl gets up to Will's desk, resting her elbows on the very edge of it so she's barely overlooking the top of his laptop, trying to see anything on the home screen. Nothing necessarily interesting. Meh.

Will turns around and raises an eyebrow. Why this matters exactly is beyond him. All he needs to know in his life is English, teaching it every day for goodness sake. "No."

She frowns, trying to remember. Certainly they must have, her crazy mother and her crazy English teacher and everything. "Yeah, you have. That one time at the grocery store."

"Ah. Must've forgotten about that one." Will answers, scratching the back of his neck. He sits down in his chair so Thalia can tell her story, and he is quite amused at the way she paces, flipping her hands out and about so dramatically that it is quite the spectacle. In all honesty, Will Solace hardly ever remembers anything insignificant in the long run. Especially with someone like Thalia Grace's mother. God, that woman.

"Well, I'm more than surprised you didn't remember her, this time," Thalia starts her tangent, and she begins to pace around the desks, running her fingers over the top of them and trailing down to the seat as she speaks on anything and everything, just not exactly pertaining to... well, the story. "She's gone off the deep end, without an ar. Or a life jacket. Or whatever, I don't care, but my mother is now batshit crazy," Will winces at the swearing. He tries his hardest not to swear in front of anyone not around his civilized adult age, but on the same token, correcting Thalia Grace gets you nowhere. "She can't even go into Jason's room, it's affected my mother so badly. I can only imagine what losing a child must be like, but then I sit back and get angry because I am also my mother's child! I'm her daughter for God's sake and she's so overwhelmed at the fact my brother died, it's terrible. I must be so insensitive to her, because now I'm moving my clutter in there where there isn't room in mine. She thinks I'm such an awful sibling because of that. Jason wouldn't give two shits. It's a big room," she takes a pause, but the pause breaks because she laughs, hands on her knees, as she continues. "Actually, I was talking with Piper, Piper McLean yesterday, and I came out and said it. I must be like this huge bitch or something for doing that to him, right? Although, I want to bet, if I died tomorrow, there'd be this huge ass article in the paper about me. The entire world would mourn me and say I'm a nice girl and everyone loves me and then they are getting caught with their pants down because that's not true. Have you noticed that? Once you die in high school, people think you're like, totally cool. Jason not talking crap about people? That's _crap._ He talked bad about me. About you. About Luke. About Piper, he's human and well... God, people can be so-" she pauses again, realizing she had just went on a huge tangent, and Will is looking at her with the widest eyes ever, like he cannot believe what just happened. "Do you have any brothers or sisters?" Thalia asks, returning to the front desk.

He looks her dead in the eye, and to her entire rant on lord knows what, Will responds with, "No."

"Oh," Thalia sits back, almost dejectedly. "You must've been lonely as a kid then, growing up without siblings to talk to. Though Jason and I weren't the _best_ of siblings, he at least had my back when I needed him. I don't know if he could've said the same for me. Any friends?"

"Plenty!" Will smiles back at her. Good times filled as a much younger, much more appealing teenager spending afternoons cramped up against bookcases and a flashlight, sneaking into school grounds after hours, getting permission forms from his parents to _stay_ later to read... good times, good times. "Alice, the Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, Huck Finn, Tom Sawyer..."

She groans low, backing away from the desk and turning on her heel, running her hands down her face in morbid embarrassment. "Are these actual friends literally named after book characters, or are they the book characters themselves? You must've read a lot of books, gosh."

The English teacher feels a burn at his cheeks, his grin is sheepish, almost so cheesy it burns. But, hell, spending his days reading only strengthened his mental mind. "I just read a lot of books. Sorry to disappoint, Thalia."

"That's really... really sad. You had no one else to talk to, did you? What about your parents?" Thalia asks. Will opens his mouth to answer, but she cuts him off instead. "Don't even answer that. It's probably a no, I imagine. They probably worked a lot, gave you permission to do the reading, huh? Well... more power to you." Thalia shrugs lamely.

"No, no, I had people to talk to," Will stands up, feverish and excited. Something about the topic of literature and friends and not allowing a mix of the two seemed to peeve him off. "I had many scintillating conversations after school in the library with Mr. Jackson."

"If that's an imaginary friend..." Thalia trails off, and her voice tone is hinting at something particularly scary. If she is to find out from this interaction with her teacher that he is indeed the loner she makes him out to be, and there's nothing interesting in him at all, she'll walk out. She'll find Luke, she'll find Piper, and they will get the hell out of that classroom.

"He was the school librarian, Thalia. No, he wasn't imaginary. We'd speak for hours about books. I'm a book nerd, and I can't help that."

"Oh," she frowns, rubbing her chin. Wasn't exactly what she wanted to hear, but better nonetheless. Thalia takes a step back and analyzes her teacher for a second. Though she truly hates admitting it, Mr. Solace is her favorite teacher she's ever had in high school, and there's a reason for it that she cannot particularly pinpoint. Maybe it is his honest appeal, or his somewhat good looks, or well... anything, actually. "That's much better. And what about now?" she does a quick look over, seeing there's no ring on his finger. "Are you married or..." he interrupts her by laughing, Will rears his head back and chuckles. "Why is that so funny to you?"

"It's not really," Will admits. "It's just very forward of you."

She looks around the classroom, laughing partly. It was completely empty save for the two of them. There were many secrets they could share that would not meld into the walls for goodness sake. "Yeah, well, Mr. Solace, there's no one else here, so-"

"I'm not married, no. I did, however, have a cat named Chiron. After the famous centaur in Greek mythology."

Will looks away for a moment, out at the azure sky. Actually, once upon a time, in such a fairytale way, he did almost get a wife. A woman he truly loves to this day, but deep down in him he knows that he cannot go after, especially with everything the two have been through. Her warm eyes still flash in his mind from time to time, when he was so much younger. Will Solace can pinpoint exact spots in his house where he and his girlfriend used to make love, and even then he hasn't cleaned up what sits there in its place. One of the scars on his left elbow is from chipped glass after the two of them rammed themselves into a mirror accidentally.

Thalia makes a face, half stuck between sticking out her tongue and frowning. "Is that an old person term for a girlfriend, or...?"

"No, that's an old person term for a cat, Thalia," Will throws his hands up in slight exasperation. "How old do you think I am?"

"Not _that_ old, I hope." she giggles.

"Gee, I feel so much better." he laments.

"And what about Mr. Jackson?"

"He wasn't that much older than me, only by four years. Found out he died recently over a drug overdose," Will says, looking abashed. "He's not here on this Earth any longer, but I do know, from our after school chats and things, that it helped cultivate my love of language that I can now pass to everyone I teach. To all of you..." he trails off, looking around the room once more, frowning, again, Thalia and him were the only other two in the room. "Or, to you, at least, since no one else has shown up..."

Almost momentously, Luke's gentle and grinning face appears in the doorway entrance as he walks in, a binder stuck between his armpit. He walks in, chipper and exuberant. Must've been a good day for him so far. "Good morning, Mr. Solace."

"Luke." Will nods. The teacher sits down at his chair for a moment, opening his email, going through them.

Thalia glares briefly at Luke. It bothers her immensely that she cannot place why her brother's best friend does not resonate with her. Maybe it's the overbearing smile, the constant shifting of the eyes as he _was_ a boy, or just the plain fact that it was evidently clear he needed a woman in his life- his constant talking to Piper and herself made that notion very clear. She drops the glare though. It _is_ silly to be stuck on such minute things.

"Piper is going to be late," Luke says, remembering what he had been told earlier in the hallway by the auburn haired gal, who had been running up and down the hallways looking for something. "She'll be here, though."

"Oh. Thank you." Will smiles.

The two teenagers cross over to each other. "Hey." Luke greets, ever so smiling.

"Hey." Thalia responds half-heartedly.

"How's it going?"

"How'd you know Piper was going to be late?" she asks suddenly, and she's now regretting that the words even dared leave her lips because he now has an eyebrow raised at her with strong confusion. Thalia curses inside her mind, she really, _really_ , needs to let her temper under control.

"I just ran into her. She had to go to her locker. Looking for something that she had lost in Nico's office," he answers. "Kinda like my ID," Luke pauses, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly. "I was thinking of coming by this afternoon, it's that's okay. To see how your mom is doing and stuff like that."

"My mom's not gonna be at home tonight." Thalia lies, blinking.

"Your dad, then."

"Working." _That_ part was true.

"Okay, well..." Luke runs out of things to say, running a hand through his bronze hair, chewing on the inside of his left cheek. "Can I come by anyways? _We_ could hang out and stuff. Like- I know you've been struggling with that assignment in Government and I was thinking maybe I could help you with it."

Thalia is not having it. She crosses her arms together, scowling. "What is it with you, Luke? Is it just any girl who's even remotely connected to Jason, or what? I mean, first, it's Piper, who you've been showering with affection... and now you want to come over to talk and just, like-"

"What?" he is completely taken aback by this outburst, almost giving a, _what in the hell is your deal type of facial expression._

If not to make the situation even more interesting, Piper McLean takes this moment to bustle in at the last moment, out of breath and completely winded. The girl places her hands on her knees as she catches her breath. Thalia does a quick one over of her too, and this time she sees something on her right hand that catches her off guard. A strange ring of sorts, pink and looking actually quite beautiful, it stirs up some jealousy in her.

"Sorry I'm late, Mr. Solace. I couldn't find something, and it turns out it was just in my locker..." Piper apologizes, straightening herself, fixing her hair.

"Hey." Luke waves.

"Hey." she regards him, then freezing up as Thalia walks over to her.

"Piper." the dark haired girl nods.

"Thalia." the spoken back greeting is just as cold.

"Genuinely interested," Thalia says randomly, out of nowhere. "That ring on your finger... I've never seen it before. What is it?"

The girl in charge of literally everything in the high school blinks. This is quite new, _Thalia Grace_ of all people taking a liking to her. Strange. She looks down at her hand, realizing that her least favorite person in the world actually is curious about her. It brings a warm feeling to her heart. "Oh! The ring... my Dad gave it to me a couple of days ago, and I couldn't remember where I last put it. Family heirloom, kind of a big deal for me."

"Why?"

"I'm half Cherokee." Piper states.

Thalia raises an eyebrow. "Really? I didn't know that."

"Not many people do."

"It's a pretty ring."

Piper twists it, taking it off her finger and clutching it in her hand instead. "Thank you."

Will looks up from his computer, seeing that he had a somewhat decent sized classroom. As if. Twenty five plus kids transforms into three and he still has the gall to call it a class. Pah! He shuts his computer, going around and sitting on top of his desk. Piper, Thalia, and Luke take their seats, all sitting in the front row, the three seats closest to the blonde teacher. In order, it went Piper, Luke, and Thalia. Will feels the tension threatening to spill over in his class, and that really is not a good thing. "Thanks for taking your seats. I'd like to get started," he pauses, sifting through a folder he had placed on the desk earlier during his conversation with Nico. "Now, I know we're moving onto _Hamlet_ , but I thought we could take one last look at _Metamorphosis_ and the essays I made you all read. I have a few in this folder from a few periods, and I'm going to just randomly read from one of them. A paragraph stuck out at me that I'd think you all could learn something from," he clears his throat, flips to the third page of the essay, and reads as follows, "This book represents the many sides of life. You have the oppressed who are constantly put underneath the power of someone else yet never do anything to stop it. There are some oppressed who try to make a difference. I wish I could be one of those who could try and make a difference. Things are happening in my life that are important, and there are few obstacles in my way that I am unable to get rid of. It infuriates me so that I cannot do anything in changing that. I will be writing a follow up to this eventually, Mr. Solace." Will finishes reading and examines the faces of the three students in his class.

Luke leans forward somewhat, rubbing his chin. "Hmm..."

"Yes, Luke?"

"I was just thinking," the boy answers. "It wasn't about the essay, but just thinking in general."

"About?" Will asks.

"Desire." the blonde teenager says, and he looks down at his hands. Piper and Thalia both grimace in perfectly, never to be repeated again, unison, which causes the latter to scowl, and the former to roll her eyes.

"What about it?" Will is fascinated that someone so young would try and tackle an issue so deep.

"It's just weird, and I want to know why I can't control it..." Luke looks out the window, staring back Thalia's incriminating gaze.

"Well said."

A moment of silence passes between everyone in the room, save for the chirp of the birds out the window. Will really wants to be a blue jay at this particular second in time, to spare himself from a world of excruciating awkwardness that is just resonating from the teenagers like a complete tidal wave. He tries looking into the gaze that each teen has sitting in front of him, but he's unable to read anything. Piper raises her hand.

"Mr. Solace, can I say something?"

"Yes. I'm not a TV. I'm approachable." Will says assuredly.

"Well, I mean, you can talk to a TV if you _really_ wanted..." Luke trails off, but it is evident that he's too far gone in his own mind to make rational decisions, let alone rational statements. Everything is muddled up with the problem of desire.

"Luke..."

"Sorry." Luke does not look sorry.

Piper purses her lips for a minute, then continues speaking. "I just feel like it's hard to focus with everything that's been going on, you know what I mean?"

"Everything that's going on..." Will repeats, scratching his nails into the wood of the desk. He is trying to comprehend exactly what the hell that statement even means while Thalia's stare just bores into Piper, as if the raven haired girl is trying to burn a hole in the back of the auburn's head, maybe it'd set her on fire.

Piper shakes her head and stands up. Brining up Jason was not a wise move. The girl is shaken visibly, rubbing her arms complacently. "I'm- I'm sorry, Mr. Solace."

"Where are you going?" Will demands, and he wishes he hadn't spoken in that tone of voice as the girl flinches back from him.

"I can't do this."

"Why not?"

"I just can't do this. I'm _really_ sorry." Piper bites her lip, drawing the tiniest hint of blood, and Will has to squeeze his eyes shut so the memories don't flood him and there'd be the crying, and gnashing of teeth. The girl turns to go, grabbing her stuff. Luke stands, trying to be the gentleman that he is.

"I'll go with you, Pipes. Just try not to cry and-"

Thalia is standing at this point, and she marches straight in between the two of them, her face a mere inch from Piper's. Thalia's hands are fisted together, unmistakable rage marring her features at this point. She is dead sick of the entire world thinking they got a remote pass from life just because someone they knew died. She, of all people, could take that luxury, her freaking brother is dead and she's not bent over some black casket crying her eyes out.

"Sit down." she demands.

Piper recoils, looking completely disgusted. Their amicable period didn't last very long, did it? "What's your problem?"

"Everyone, please-" Will tries interrupting, trying just maybe to bring order back into his class. He's afraid, he's very afraid that there's going to be the swinging of fists and the crying and blood... and oh my God the blood, why doesn't it just go away?

"Sit down!" Thalia screams again, taking a threatening step towards Piper.

"Seriously, what the hell is your issue with me?" the auburn girl demands now, matching her evenly.

Thalia barks a laugh. "Are you seriously going to try and ask that of me? What are you? Fucking delusional?"

"If it would make you happy, then yes, tell me."

"You should hear yourself!"

Will almost bites on his tongue so he doesn't scream. "Thalia-"

"I'm _sorry_ , for whatever I've done, but clearly I have no idea what it is!" Piper shouts.

"It isn't your fault, you're just perpetuating it." Thalia sneers.

"Why don't you stop for a minute to think instead of just saying what comes to your head every five seconds? Have you thought of that one, maybe? You just go on and on and on and on and on about the most random things and they never make any cohesive sense! I'm sick of it!"

"Ladies!" Will shouts, but even his demanding voice dies in the ensuing onslaught of raised voices and fists.

"I think you need to shut up if you know what's good for you." the raven haired girl threats.

Luke swallows his fear and jumps in, completely ready to take action. He grabs Piper's hand, dragging her to the door. "Come on, Pipes, let's get you cooled down and-"

"Let go of me!" Piper hisses.

"It's too late for that!" Thalia yells at them from across the classroom. "I give it two more hours and by then he'll already be in your pants or vice versa. I know how you work, Pipes!"

Will marches up to them, forcing everyone apart. "I said that's enough!"

Thalia doesn't give two shits and pushes her teacher straight out of the way, forcibly removing Luke from Piper, and gets right in her face about it. "All you've been doing at this school is going around and acting like the weeping, distraught bride. Well, I've had enough of your damn charade, Piper. You have just as much to lose as my sympathy for you, which last time I checked, doesn't _fucking_ exist! You're so distraught over Jason, over my _freaking brother_ , but here you are about to go have sex with Luke?"

"I honestly have no idea what you're even talking about." Piper's face is zenith at this moment, her lips pressed together, and she's refusing to look the other girl in the eye. _Don't bow to her level, you're stronger than she is,_ her mind says, _Don't think she can control you with those sharp tongued accusations. The girl is completely delusional and you know it. Let Luke by your knight in shining armor._

"She never went home with me!" Luke cries over their screams. "We were _not_ about to have sex, either! God, Thalia, what is with you?"

"You're such a _victim!_ " Thalia screams.

"Yeah, and what's it to you, then? Least I can admit it. All you do is go around and act all tough because you find it funny. It isn't! You just look like a coward!" Piper stomps her foot, feels the tears coming, grabs Luke by the wrist, and marches straight out of the classroom.

All of the bitter rage subsides like a calm storm for a brief while, as Thalia sighs deeply, left alone now with _still_ her favorite teacher on campus. Or, at least, not for long, because she's got some words for him too.

"Thalia, you cannot do that. What you just did was highly-" Will starts, a finger sternly going into her face.

"Did you like Jason more than me? Have you always liked my brother over me?" she interrupts him, sitting against the desk. Everything is all calm, all of a sudden, and he's taken aback by this. Was she suggesting what he thought she was suggesting? No, she couldn't have been.

"Pardon?"

"Did you like Jason better than me? It's a simple yes or no, Will." Thalia snaps, and it bothers him somewhat that she did not use Mr. and his last name with that statement. Made him feel less important.

"I don't know. I don't know what you want out of my answer." the teacher shrugs, turning away from her. This entire day has just been a complete disaster, and this raven haired devil was not making it any better by just constantly running her mouth.

"Just admit it to me, then. You play favorites, and Jason was one of your favorites."

"He wasn't a favorite of mine. I _don't_ have favorites, Thalia."

"You made him stay after class. You were always harder on him. He complained about that to me a lot, actually, Jason did. That he once again had to see you for a grade on a paper and whatnot. Like, seriously? The day my brother dies, he goes and sees his English teacher?"

Will runs a hand through his hair. God, he hates this conversation. He hates anything and everything that remotely wants to deal with it. This isn't going to be easy to hide, and he isn't ready to try and tell everyone yet. He can sense it building, the way Thalia narrows her gaze at him, and then he just snarls at her with such a vicious manner, it's quite atrocious to his character. "Fine! So I had a favorite! Jason Grace was my favorite student! Happy, now?"

"Why is that, Mr. Solace?" Thalia returns to being somewhat respectful with him. "Did you want to challenge my brother? Is that why you saw him like four times a week? You wanted to challenge him and saw Jason fail at that... or did you just want to talk with him?"

He sighs heavily. "Yes."

"Which is it, then?"

"I can't explain. It isn't easy to explain-" Will rubs his face with his hands, leaving red marks.

"I know he was your favorite. It was clear as day since day one, Mr. Solace. I know that you cared. I honestly want to know, but at the same time, I really don't know if I even want to think about something like that-"

His eyes widen at her sentence. Was she suggesting amorous action between him and her brother? Thalia Grace had lost her freaking mind. She thought, _thinks_ , that Will Solace and Jason Grace were in a relationship and now were hiding it from everyone else. "It- Thalia, it isn't what you think."

"Then tell me what it is!" Thalia throws her hands up in the air out of anger. "I don't know why it's so difficult. Were you screwing my brother, Mr. Solace? Were you fucking Jason?"

"No!" Will shouts.

"Did you love him?"

"No!"

"Then what was it? Why'd you see him all the time? And I swear, you lie to me... it won't be pretty."

Will runs a hand through his hair, walks to the window, sighs, and turns to face her. "Alright! He was my _son_."

The answer is not what Thalia is expecting. She thinks he could be talking about how her brother came onto him, or something like that, but this response throws her off of the train tracks, into the water below, and to perhaps a place she'll never be able to find. "What?"

"Jason was my son. Your mother and I-" Will tries explaining, and he looks as if he's aged fifty years at this point.

"That's not funny!" Thalia hisses, getting right in the blonde's face, poking him in the chest with one of her nails. "You think this is a joke?"

"No."

"Then how dumb do you think I am?"

"I'm telling you the truth!" Will throws his hands up in innocence.

"I don't believe that horseshit for a second. You were never his dad!" Thalia's breathing is ragged.

Will groans loudly, kicking the wall behind him. "Thalia, do you ever freaking listen? I never said I was Jason's _dad_."

"Didn't you hear what you just said? Mr. Solace-"

He walks by her, giving him as much distance between the two of them as he possibly could. Good lord, this wasn't supposed to happen. Will Solace just wants a day where everything can be alright between the two of them and that there'd be no possible way of this secret getting out. "I said he was my _son_ , Thalia. I never was his dad."

Will closes his eyes, wiping his brow. Thalia stares at him, her mouth open wide as she began to partially piece the puzzle together. Her hands shake, but for once her voice does not seem to want to work. Thalia Grace, for once in her life, is completely speechless.

This morning just went by so swimmingly, didn't it?

* * *

 **And there we have it ladies and gentlemen! Our revelation! Will was Jason's father (yes, a mess up of canon, but I really didn't want to use Zeus as my main character, and also I'm trying to have the Solangelo pairing and all that...) Now, exactly, how does such a thing like that happen? Well, you'll find out next chapter. I know that this was purely argumentative, but teenagers can be very obnoxious and loud. Thalia purely has a bone to pick with like, almost everyone except for Nico. She's mad at Piper because she's going around being someone that our dark haired girl feels has no right to do, mad at Luke because he's just playing the field, and she's mad at Will because she couldn't figure him out. With this bit of information, I can imagine that's harder to now do. Thank you all so much for reading! Please review and let me know what you thought! I'm going to have Chapter #6: Hearsay, out soon, and I'm excited for that one too. I hope you all have an amazing day! Love you all! Bye!**

 **~ Paradigm**


	6. Chapter 6: Hearsay

**Hey everyone, Paradigm of Writing here with a brand new chapter of Cardinal Stasis, #6: Hearsay. Last time we had an explosion where Thalia got ticked off at just about everyone under the sun and we learned of one thing... Will is a weird son of a gun, being the guy he is... Jason was his** ** _son_** **. Yes, I realize that disrupts canon beyond anything that makes sense, but it was him or Zeus, as I wanted to do a Solangelo pairing and so everything like this lined up. Jason's mother, whom we are going to see in this chapter is going to be a little different too, as she definitely wouldn't be Thalia and Jason's mother, but it is how my mind wanted to line things up. An AU to the nth degree. Thank you guys for the reviews on last chapter, surprised to see people truly like it with the definite messing up of things, but in all fairness, I suppose. This chapter will be explosive (just have the guarantee that they will all be at this point forward). We're going to be wrapping things up pretty quickly actually, just two more chapters left after this. Enjoy Chapter #6: Hearsay! And again, P.S, some usage of the f word.**

* * *

Nico glances over at the woman sitting across from him with a sheepish grin, clutching the base of the guitar so hard that his knuckles turn white. This is somewhat awkward, and he knows this, but for some reason, Will is taking a very long time in getting to the counselor's office. Unbeknownst to the raven haired male, earlier that morning, Thalia exploded in fury all over that very classroom. At Piper, at Luke, and especially at Will. Also, what the counselor has no idea of is the blonde's confession to the punk rocker (in a sense, it was her embodiment). Everything was about to come full circle, though he cannot foresee the future.

The woman sitting across from him brushes some of her hair off her face. Nico runs her name in his head a couple of times, liking the sweet sound radiating within. " _Aphrodite..._ " his voice repeats. Aphrodite's shoulder length mahogany hair hangs comfortably down her back, a noticeable tan line appearing at her wrists and at about mid thigh. Despite the strangely placed deposition of sun, she is virtually stunning, and he knows that she's the mother of Jason and Thalia Grace, who's bodies and looks are nothing to sneeze at.

Aphrodite gives him an appeasing smile, the lady is nearing her mid forties and has no real need to be sitting in front of a youthful high school employee just for fun. Her electric raspberry blue eyes pierce over the walls, and she notices there's the same stupid raven that Thalia and Luke broke on separate occasions now sitting further back. Nico scratches the back of his neck. There must be something he can do. He searches his brain for something hurriedly.

"So... there was this thing I wrote a few years ago, after I just graduated and thought you'd like to hear it..." Nico stammers after a moment's thought, blushing heavily.

She raises a tanned eyebrow at him, a smile quipping at the tips of her lips. "Sure. What is it exactly?"

"A free verse poem."

"You write poetry?" Aphrodite asks, her gaze brightening immensely. "I do too, actually. Or... _did_. But that's an entirely separate matter-"

"Yeah, or at least I try," Nico says abashedly, running his hands on his pants. "I recently thought that it would fit in dedication to Jason."

"Was it dedicated to someone else beforehand?"

"My ex-girlfriend." the raven haired male says bluntly, but now he's wishing he never said a damn thing because of Aphrodite's crestfallen face, it is hurting more than anything to get told that the 'newly' dedicated poem was actually to a lover of failed efforts. Gorgeous. Really rested well in her heart.

"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that."

"Yeah..."

"What's with the guitar?" Aphrodite questions. She's been staring at it for a couple of minutes in her wandering gaze, and every time her eyes flicker over it, it reminds her of evenings spent with a man she's now long hated with warm fireplaces out in the summer heat, snuggled up close while he sang deep tunes of love and sodomy. So sweet.

"I was meeting up with Mr. Solace this afternoon, actually after you guys talk, and I had this song I was going to show him."

"So you also write songs, too? Aren't you just a little creationist?" she teases him, pulling down on her dress, a stylish cut-off floral pattern with swathe crimson and amaranthine lines.

Nico blushes. This is so reminiscent of his ex, it gives him the willies. She'd sit there in a chair and compliment him on whatever, then it'd prove to be false. He actually took up writing songs because of the girl who left him. She had radiating blonde hair, like Jason, like Luke, and was super intelligent too... but there was a lack of something in Nico that caused her to flee. Not just break up with him, but _flee_. "I suppose," he blushes again. "Would you like to hear the poem? I've just been holding onto the guitar. Perhaps I could strum it while saying a verse."

"If you'd like." Aphrodite laughs gently.

"There's me, just me in this room," Nico says, rocking back and forth in his chair, eyes transfixed on the door. He's waiting, anticipating the lock to turn, to see his most favorite face in the entire world appear, just for a little while. "It's gloomy without you. I think about you, but what else can I do with the impact on you left me? At night or at dawn, I decide to turn no lights on. It does not replace the spark that you left. I can, and I know others do too, they try to reach through the air to see if you'll still be there. Here is the sound of a beating heart. A body that misses you, a life that just wants you here. When I hear it, I wake with a start. Without that I am just another mortal who is falling apart. Jason, you make the entire school bright. Now it has gone dim without your shining light," he strums once as a joke, and then frowns. He actually _does_ miss the student, for his charm, his elusive ability to brighten anyone's day. "It's stupid, I know..." Nico says.

Aphrodite sits back against the chair and looks elsewhere. She can see where it fits her son. Her heart aches and trembles at the notion. Everything in that boy's life collapsed, including an early death. Which was just _great_. Now, the brunette has to live a life with a moody teenage daughter, a husband who can't get himself straight, and a villainous ghost from her past. "It's really nice, Nico." she smiles, and she means this. Aphrodite Grace does not tell lies. She's a George Washington, just flash forward a few hundred years.

"Thanks," Nico nods, gripping the guitar. In actuality, Jason's name was replaced by another. A gorgeous blonde. Annabeth Chase. The name sits on his lips like a phantom. "I didn't write it for Jason, like I said. When my girlfriend dumped me, Annabeth was her name, it all came to me. It was about how her leaving me hurt my entire social life. All my friends and family missed her, hell, I _missed_ her. But I think now the same can be said for your son. Yes?"

"Sure. I suppose so."

"She broke up with me because she thought I wasn't mature enough," the counselor looks down at his hands and sees scarlet. Something he wishes to never bring up again. "Thinking about it now, I don't know if I'm mature _now._ "

"It grows as we get older," Aphrodite comments. "Just don't say that to me. Thalia reminds me like every day how old I am. I don't need that. I'm also sorry." Her answer stings, as it is almost like a hypocritical statement given her life and nature. Married, and she decides to cheat. What a great and wonderful woman she must've been, huh? On those same nights by the fireplaces, she'd have her secret man rub circles gently into her back while he made love from behind... forget the fact she had another man at home who'd do the same thing a week later on their anniversary.

"It's okay," Nico assures her. "Telling me sorry when you weren't the one who said it doesn't honestly help. I appreciate the gesture."

Aphrodite squirms somewhat. Now the conversation has completely nosedived. "Is Mr. Solace coming soon?"

"Yeah, definitely. Classes ended about ten minutes ago. He may be getting stuff together before coming down. He actually has no idea that you're here."

She blanches somewhat, flinching back from the guidance counselor. Will has no idea she's here? Oh, this one is going to go over so well with him. She remembers the blonde's temper, at a much younger age. It clearly wouldn't have gotten better with age, unlike his maturity. And somehow this Nico Di Angelo character thinks that this is a good idea? She's going to need a Xanax when this is over.

"You didn't let him know I was coming?"

"Haven't gotten the chance to see him yet," Nico shrugs his shoulders. "I talked to him this morning, but that was before you called."

"I only wanted to stop by and ask him about Jason. With what happened."

"Right, right." he nods.

"What Jason may have said, how he may have acted. Things like that..." Aphrodite trails off, and she's totally bullshitting to Nico right now, poor guy. She's going to slam that blonde son of a bitch into the wall and spit in his face. Her pristine demeanor will crumble without restraint at his behavior, everything he did mounts up to one explosion, one tide of unrelenting fury.

Nico is tired of hearing her go on and on and on about Will. That's his job, his place, to talk over and over and over about him, not hers. "Don't worry," he hesitates from calling her ma'am, or even by her first name. "Mrs. Grace," he decides on, being respectful to some degree. "He'll be here. This is Will Solace we're talking about. He's just like... have you met him?"

She expects this question, so it isn't out of left field or anything. "Yes. A few months ago, at the parent-teacher night. Talked to me about Jason's good grades, and the one time Thalia threw a pencil sharpener at him. One of those tiny plastic ones. He's forgiven her since." Aphrodite bites her lip. In actuality, this never happened. She's never run into him outside of a bedroom since _that_ day, since that one horrible, fateful day. She loved, _loves_ Jason, but why in God's name did he have to exist at this particular place and time?

"Oh yeah... I remember that evening. I was in the weeds, so many distraught and disgruntled parents just dying to talk to me," Nico rubs his chin, pensive. "Like I said, Mr. Solace is the best. And I know he does want to talk to you."

"Is there any way you can maybe page him or something?" Aphrodite blurts out suddenly, her palms starting to sweat. This is getting almost unbearable, the way her anger is surmounting. The brunette is afraid of a brink.

The look of annoyance is clear on the male's face, and she bites down on her lip again. "He'll be here," There's a slight pause between them, like a weird clamminess that settles over the room and makes her skin itch. "Can I say one more thing while we wait?"

"Of course."

"I just need you to realize that your son was really popular with the school. Jason was loved by all four classes, and I know that he's going to be remembered further on than just through this year." Nico answers.

Aphrodite is unsure of whether or not to believe him. She runs through the cycle of grief over in her head. This woman is at the anger stage now, but she simply nods her head and dabs at her eyes, trying to shed a few tears. Tears help. They help _good_. Before she can speak again, to say a choked out thank you, the door handle to the room snaps. Someone on the other side curses, a familiar voice that brings back too many memories to Aphrodite's mind, and she sits further into the chair. All the muscles in her body tense, like someone is winding up a spring and about to let it loose. She could pounce on him right then and there. Her mind is debating it. It wouldn't be the right thing to do, with Nico sitting there and all, but she's just wanting to get everything out in the open, done in a way that it'll hurt beyond what Will would be normally expecting.

The door opens, and standing in the entrance is Will. His blonde hair is up and messy, waving around slightly in his agitated movement. She can pinpoint a few splotches of irritation. He's getting a rash again. Means he's stressed. Aphrodite grins to herself. He deserves it. Will winces instinctually at the door slamming into the wall. That's gonna leave a mark. "Sorry I'm late Nico, just had to file away some more essays and-" he stops, his eyes finally noticing that Aphrodite is sitting just ten feet away from him, not even. Will makes note of how the lady's hands turn into savage claws. She probably wants to rake his face off.

Unlike the raven haired male, who's face is beyond happy to see the English teacher. "Hey, Will! You know Aphrodite, right? Jason and Thalia's mother?"

The teacher swallows heavily. Oh shit. "Yeah... I do. Hey." Will says reluctantly.

Aphrodite waves back at him, her face trying not to grimace into a scowl. "Hi."

"I'm really sorry about this. Didn't mean to interrupt," he babbles, turning to Nico. "I thought we were going to have pizza."

"We are!" Nico announces, standing up. He places the guitar on the ground by his chair and walks around the desk. "I actually was going to go get it," he walks back Will. "Do you two mind waiting till I get back? It shouldn't be too long."

"You- you don't need my help with the pizza?" Will asks, his voice impossibly soft. He has an arm out, touching the counselor's shoulder like a three year-old who wants candy but is afraid to ask the responsible adult. Makes the blonde look almost quite pathetic.

"It isn't a two person job, Will," Nico makes a face. Why does he look so bothered? Maybe he is completely shaken by Jason's death and refuses to admit it. Maybe he needs to get the teacher drunk. When they do that, they say things that don't have any control over. Hmm... "Just sit tight. Unless you can't really do that, I can have you help me with some email responses, but that wouldn't be fun," he turns to go. "Just don't say anything interesting while I'm gone. If I'm not included, it isn't cool."

"Don't worry. We won't," Aphrodite sighs, eyes crossing to Will who sits down in the raven haired male's chair, kicking the guitar accidentally, causing a slew of cuss words to come from his mouth. "We'll just be sitting here in awkward silence."

The counselor laughs. "Hah! Good one!" Nico closes the door, and Will's heart sinks as the last look of familiarity in that black wave of hair vanishes, leaving him alone with a female reincarnation of the devil. Oh God, this was going to suck beyond words, and he's never speechless. A long, awkward pause settles over the two of them.

In those few seconds, each offended party takes a minute to scrutinize each other. Done so with a magnifying glass that shows each flaw in a highlighted color. Aphrodite sees a man who's lost hope, Will is thin, and for a moment she actually feels kind of sympathetic, a twinge of remorse flaring up in her heart before it is shut down with a resolving scowl. He looks over at her and sees a woman who despite all she's been through, seems to be very empowered. She believes he's old. He believes she's brave. Each little nitpick builds up a wall that tears itself down the moment the brunette decides to open her mouth.

"Where'd you order the pizza from?"

"The Stoll's." Will responds without a seconds hesitation. Maybe, just maybe, Aphrodite will decide to not be a bitch and ask all the tough questions. He knows why she's here. Why Nico didn't tell him this was the question, one that could perhaps bring down the shaking foundations of Earth. The events that took place earlier that morning flash by. Thalia's face, loud in surprise at his stupid reveal just makes it all seem like one big joke.

"Good choice." she says. Again, Aphrodite is being genuine. Travis and Connor Stoll make good pizza.

"They do the thin crust."

"Right," the brunette agrees. Then, because she likes messing with him, and primarily because it's _Will_ of all people, Aphrodite adds, "Don't all pizzerias do thin crust now? Dominoes, Pizza Hut... local establishments. Travis and Connor Stoll make good pizza, regardless of thin crust."

Will scratches at his arm. "I like theirs better than anyone else. Nico suggested it. I just went along with the idea."

"He didn't tell you, did he?" Aphrodite looks down at her hands, and they are red. Red with coursing fury, the want and desire to place them around the blonde's neck and choke the living life out of him with two squeezes and a satisfying pop. Nico may have caused World War III and the rate everything else was going to happen. Her voice is bitter and blunt, everything Aphrodite Grace is not, especially when she met a guy like Will Solace.

"What?" the blonde frowns.

"Nico didn't tell you I'd be here." she reiterates. Despite all the books Will reads, despite all the years spent learning the English language, he cannot discern subjects from one another. Who else would she be talking about? Her dead son?

"No."

"That's what I thought."

They look at the floor in another bough of silence. Will wants the ground to open up and swallow him whole. It'd be for the best, wouldn't it? Never have to see Nico's youthful face ever again? That'd be nice, wouldn't it? Speaking of, the blonde's body felt a few degrees hotter at the revelation of how the most trustworthy person he knows in the entire school doesn't even have his back. What a lousy friend. For someone so interested in his well being, he didn't look like he cared at all. Total asshat.

"Why are you here?" Will asks, and there's nothing forgiving in his voice. He's upset, and dammit, he has reason to be!

Aphrodite cocks her head in a manner that screams, _idiot, what the hell do you think,_ and she scoffs, shifting somewhat in the chair. "What do you think? I'm here to see you, obviously. Nico called me about Thalia's behavior in a few of her classrooms because a couple of teachers were nervous. In a moment of realization, I forgot that I still hadn't had time to even think about Jason. I let Nico know I had been trying to get a hold of you. So he told me I should come in. That was at around eleven or so."

"He's been talking to you?" the English teacher frowns. "He never mentioned anything like that to me. We've talked a lot since that day and he's never mentioned it-"

She rubs her forehead. Whenever Will Solace is stumped on why something did not go his way, he'll sit there and scrutinize it over and over until something makes since, and Aphrodite Grace does not have the time to be dealing with any of this. "Yes, Will, he did. I couldn't get you on the phone, and eventually this was going to have to happen. I never told him that I was trying to get you at home."

"I- I was going to call..." Will trails off, looking down at his hands. He hasn't done so yet, and it brings the teacher to a place where he's never been before. Visible sadness, visible understanding of how bad he really messed up with all of this.

Aphrodite does not give him a single second to continue speaking before she cackles wickedly, her face souring immensely. "When? When the fuck were you thinking of that?" her ego widens somewhat at seeing her ex-lover wince at the swearing, it hurts, and so she'll continue doing it. "I've been waiting for the phone to ring for the past _two weeks_ , Will. No note, no email, no text message, no phone call. You are going to sit there and tell me one thing but never, _ever_ get around to it! All I've been getting are these shitty sympathy cards, every day, from total strangers. People you'd think would have no idea that anyone in my family ever existed, but no... there's nothing from you in that entire pile of crap. There's cards from college roommates that I haven't seen in years, or the strangers we see at the library or the diner down the street... Will, you have no idea what this feels like? And you wanna know something? I put all the cards in this bucket, and they're mixed in with our Christmas cards. How do you think I feel with that? To get a 'Happy Holidays', while right next to it is a card that says 'Sorry your son is dead'? Jesus, Will! These things sound so fucking sarcastic, it isn't even funny. I can't wait to write my cards this year! God is dead, and so is our son. Merry _fucking_ Christmas! Love, the Graces!" she snarls in one go, and Aphrodite is standing at this point, slamming her hand down on the desk, looking with vengeance at Will, who's gone blank.

The blonde groans. "Aphrodite, I-"

"You're not going to even be at the funeral, are you?" she demands from him.

"I can't come! You know that! Then I'd be forced to speak, and then everything will come out and-" Will babbles.

"Oh, don't give me that bullshit," Aphrodite snaps, sinking down into her chair. "You have all the intention of coming, but is instead going to cower in the corner like you always do. _Nico_ is coming to the funeral for heavens sake, Will! You've done nothing in all of this. Everyone is so preoccupied with my son's death, and all I want to do is get past it! I've got no one to talk to."

"How's-"

"I didn't come here to talk about Thalia. Nor did I come here to talk about my husband," Aphrodite snaps. "We're going to discuss my dead son because we can! We're going to discuss Jason Grace because I want to get it off of my chest." she says angrily, and then she swears as she grips at the base of her boot.

He peers over the desk. "What's wrong with your boot?"

"The sole is coming off." she answers half-heartedly, simmering down somewhat. She's getting it out of her system. This is good, this is _really_ good for her. Like therapy, except with a lot of yelling.

"Can I see?"

"No. Not like this!" she snarls, as he rose up to take a better look.

Will slinks back into the chair behind the desk. He remembers all of this, he remembers when she acted like this the first time he had left her. How he vowed that this would never happen again, until her bright little boy he helped create plops himself down at the desk right in front of his, smiles with his crooked nose and busted up lip, and starts this whirlwind that resembles the apocalypse. "Okay..."

"What did you say to him, Will?" Aphrodite asks, looking at her ex-lover straight in the eye. "You have any notion, any conceptual idea of how fucking angry I am, given that you were the last person to see him?"

"That wasn't my fault! I can't control when someone dies, Aphrodite!" Will yells at her, and this is the first occasion out of many he raises his voice with her. _That day. That day._

"Yes it was! You were the one who arranged these meetings with him. Thalia would come home complaining about how she'd have to ask Luke to get him at school because _you_ made him stay!"

"I never arranged anything. Thalia accused me of that this afternoon and I never did something like that," he argues back. Then, something else enters his mind that infuriates him, too. "You know, Aphrodite, why didn't you think this through? If you never wanted me to talk to Jason, which clearly you are having oppressed emotion towards, then you should not have sent him to my school!"

"What was I supposed to do with him?"

"Home school him."

"Just him?"

"Yeah..."

"And have Thalia upset at me for favoring one child over the other?" Aphrodite raises an eyebrow, balking, calling his bluff. "You have any idea how many times a damn day she complains about that? Especially that Jason is dead. She rants to me on this and that. I'd rather have one year of suffering, then to have a lifetime with my children complaining. Thought it'd work. I sent him here because it was the right thing to do. You knew this day was coming. You _knew_ you were going to have him in your class-"

"So did you!" Will explodes.

"But that doesn't mean I was prepared for you talking to him and telling Jason things..." Aphrodite complains.

"I _never_ spoke to him about anything of the sort." Will insists.

"You must've. Do you not know yourself enough to make that assumption?" She glares at him with hell bent fury. All of these years build up a volcano of emotion, one where she decides that if she erupts, it's for a good cause. The blonde scratches at his arm. Now Aphrodite has gotten him upset, and this really won't be good, because now it is going to take him a long time to calm down.

Will clenches his hands on the edge of Nico's desk. "No, Aphrodite, I didn't. I treated Jason just like any other student."

"You made him stay after class. Stop denying that."

"I may be a messed up man, Aphrodite, but there are some things I don't lie about! That's one of them," the blonde groans. "If Jason stayed, _done_ by his _own intuition,_ then we spoke about the work, or school related activities. None of this other crap!" Will is telling the truth, the whole honest truth, crossing his heart at that as well.

"Really? Really? You honestly expect me to believe that after everything you've done?" Aphrodite has the gall to just laugh in his face. "When you had the chance, _that's_ what you always spoke about? Not, 'hey, I'm your accidental father?' Not, 'the guy who lives with you didn't screw your mother to make you, but me.' I will never believe you on that. Especially after I gave you the chance and opportunity-"

"What are you talking about?" Will cries. "What opportunity was there?"

"I sent him to your school and-"

"Jesus, Aphrodite! You just said you didn't want me talking to him, but now there's opportunities and all of this other crap? It can't go both ways, you realize!"

"But, _you_ did Will! That's the issue," Aphrodite interrupts him, cutting Will off with a swift glare and decisive cut of her hand. "You didn't have to, at all, and you know that. You did talk to Jason, so don't go using it as an excuse to cower in the corner. Don't act like it is all on me, either! It is partly my fault, but a huge part of it is yours for not stepping back in a place where you weren't wanted. You're a fucking coward, Will! Always have been. Always will be!"

"Aphrodite, please-" Will tries to cut her off, weakly.

"And you know you had your chance."

"What chance?" he screams this at her.

"You were with him!" Aphrodite screams back. "You talked to him, as the last person to see him. Very. Last. One! The father who jumped ship because he all of a sudden got morals? I don't believe it! Jason, my _son's_ , last human being that he saw was the very 'dad' who fucked him over. All because you made him stay! When it should've been me! I'm Jason's mother. I should've been the last person to see my fucking son!"

"Aphrodite... please, stop..." Will runs a hand across his brow. This was causing stress lines to appear.

She pinches the bridge of her nose. "You look old." she comments after a moment of silence.

"I _am_ old." Will corrects.

"I bet you did not look like this just two weeks ago."

"I've always been 'old.' Out of my time," the blonde says. "I felt and looked like this when I met you."

"No, that isn't true," Aphrodite shakes her finger at him, like she's reprimanding him. "You were _creepy_ when I met you. Lurking in the back of the hallway or wherever the hell we were like a sexual predator. Like I was a tasty morsel for you or something."

Will rubs the side of his arm innocuously. "I've never been called that before."

"What? Sexual?"

"No. Predatory," he says, looking down. "Thalia accused me of that this afternoon as well. Which wasn't surprising given the way she has with words and all..."

His thoughts trail off, and for a minute in time, everything freezes as if it had been trapped in amber. Aphrodite Grace. Will Solace. Both in their twenties, and the former had just gotten married. The two met at a bar, entirely accidental. Back in the day when Will used to drink heavily, instead of turning for the noose or knife or pill. He kisses her accidentally, and that part was the only thing done without a true purpose. She is married, and she knew this, while she let him unbutton her dress in a motel bedroom. They had sex that very night on a hampered bed with mice droppings near the floor and mildew stains on the ceiling. They had a cheating relationship for three and a half months, until it is clear Aphrodite is starting to show signs of a pregnancy, and then Will gets around to ask her the question. When was the last time she had a period?

It all comes crashing down. Will just had started teaching, so he bails. He leaves Aphrodite one evening when they're standing in front of the hospital. It is pouring, and she calls out his name, but he refuses to turn around and look at her. Fuck her. Doing this to him and everything. She gave birth to a boy and named him Jason. Will gets a chance to see him, once, which he takes up, but it was the very last time he ever saw Aphrodite, around seven years ago, until he gets both Jason and Thalia in his AP Literature and Composition class, meaning everything fell apart.

Aphrodite shakes her head, breaking the memories. "Did you forget about me, Will? Instantly? Or was it because I had gotten pregnant that you decided to run for the hills with a tail between your legs? Or was it gradual?"

"I didn't forget," Will interrupts, putting a hand up to stop her from continuing. "I haven't forgotten, even to this day with how stupid I was and-"

"Have you thought about what we'd be like if _we_ were parents of Jason and Thalia? That I'd have divorced and gone off with you into the sunset?"

He looks down at his shoes, scuffling them against the floor, and Will then picks at the desk. He gets free a splinter that ricochets off his chest. "I thought about that the day after Jason died. What it would've meant."

"Too late." Aphrodite snarks, standing up.

"Please, wait-" he starts.

She does not want any more excuses, she's given up, and she's tired of it all. "I wanted you to be there for Jason, you know? Even after you left me alone and totally deserted me, I still wanted my son to have another male figure. Good or bad. But, then, you never did."

"I-"

"Why did you throw all of it away? I made you happy, then," Aphrodite frowns. "You made me happy, then. But, you gave up. Why? Will, why would you do something that stupid?"

The blonde walks around the desk, trying to reach out and grip her shoulder, but she's moved away from him, going to the door. "I honestly don't know..."

"God, Will..." Aphrodite looks down at her feet. "For such a smart man who's read some many books, you really don't know anything."

She wrenches open the door, revealing Nico, the raven haired male is completely at odds with himself, a look of pure horror and objectification marring his features while Aphrodite then briskly strides past him. The brunette stomps down the hallway, and Nico steps in. A box of pizza sits on his right shoulder, held up by his right hand as he walks in. Will crosses behind the counselor, who places the pizza down on the desk and turns. Nico is biting his lip. This really isn't good. Not. Even. Close. This day has just been a shit storm. Nico knows he's in for it, evident by his even paler than normal complexion.

"I'm sorry-"

"You- you set me up..." Will trails off, betrayal evident in his face, so evident that it hurts him. His voice is impossibly soft, unable to reflect the emotion that's been stabbing at him all day. "You told me to come down here, Nico!"

"I'm sorry," the other male repeats. "I thought it'd be good for you to talk."

"Why?" the blonde rasps, his voice scratchy. He's close to crying. Perhaps he _should_ cry. It'd be for the best, no?

"Just because talking to me wasn't helping," Nico explains, but it is a weak explanation and he can tell as the teacher's face is searching for an escape exit, out of a window maybe. "Talking to me was getting us nowhere, clearly I had been irritating you. She wanted to talk to you and so I thought it would've been good and-"

"You just heard everything that went on between us, didn't you?" Will gets an inch from Nico's face, his breath hot.

"I didn't want to interrupt. I-"

"What is it Nico?"

"I didn't know, okay?" the counselor shrugs weakly. "I mean, I knew that you were the last person to see him and all. I knew that Jason died while you were with him and that's all! I also knew that Aphrodite was his mom... but not that you were his dad. No one could've guessed and- Will, I just thought that-"

"You thought what, exactly?" Will screams at the raven haired male. "What exactly, pray tell, did you think Nico? That she was going to be some damsel in distress all over me, weeping, with the black fan and garments and the whole shebang? No! She was going to be pissed, and why didn't you pass this over with me beforehand? Did you think it'd be good for me or something? Actually, that's a whole other point. How do you know _what_ _'s_ good for me, Nico? You're completely clueless!" he turns away, burning in anger.

"I- I'm not clueless!" Nico sputters. "Just because I don't go around cursing everyone out like Thalia, or throwing tantrums like you do, doesn't mean I'm not upset. That also doesn't mean I don't know how to deal with my emotions or that you should take me seriously and-"

Will swivels on his heel, throwing Nico into the wall by the lapels of his shirt, forcing the guidance counselor against it, hands dangerously close to the other's neck. "How can I take you seriously when you have absolutely no idea what the fuck you're even doing?! Nico, answer me that! Everything you do in trying to help me, all these posters, and toys, and things that you say... it's just stuff! It doesn't do anything! It's a joke. How can you not see that?"

Nico gasps a breath for air, caught off guard. "I do, but-"

Will's face goes lax. "You're a fucking joke, Nico." He lets go of the raven haired male's throat, trudging towards the door like a dejected puppy. He's so tired of fighting. Will is so tired of explaining everything and no one understanding him, that no one is trying to leave him alone when that's all he needs is to be left alone.

"Nobody's perfect, Will." Nico says after him.

The blonde's voice almost gives out in a crack. "Yeah. Nobody's perfect."

"Did Jason have any idea who you were? Is- is that why he was with you?"

Will stops, his hand eclipsing the knob for the door. "No. Jason had no idea who I was."

Then, without a moment's hesitation, he opens the door, walks into the hallway, slamming it.

* * *

 **HOLY CRAP, that was one kind of chapter. Wow, I haven't felt that raw energy and anger in my writing in a long time. So, there we are guys! Chapter #6: Hearsay, of Cardinal Stasis. I am so happy with this chapter, and I hope it had you all on the edge of your seat. In short, Will meets Aphrodite, and she cheats on her husband with him. She gets pregnant with Jason, he ends their affair. Jason grows up, gets in Will's class, the teen dies... and now we're left with this mess. Just a few more chapters left till all of this gets resolved. Now, I am a smart enough guy to realize that there aren't many redeeming qualities with Will in this is there? I also can sense that I haven't written a lot of Solangelo. Well, it'll all be coming soon, soon enough. Thank you all for reading, and please give me a review! Especially on this chapter, as I think my writing is at its best in this one. I'd be dying to hear from you guys, please. I hope you all have an amazing day and that I see you soon with Chapter #7: Hallucination. I love you all! Bye!**

 **~ Paradigm**


	7. Chapter 7: Hallucination

**Hey everyone, Paradigm of Writing here with a new chapter of Cardinal Stasis, #7: Hallucination. This chapter is going to be a little hard to wrap your head around, but I'll try to explain it a little better if that can be done. Last time, Will got stuck with talking to his ex, the woman he had relations with in birthing Jason... Aphrodite (yeah, canon crushing, I know) and then our blonde English teacher got irritated with Nico to the point of yelling... and now this shall be the effects on Will from what happened last chapter. This is done in three sections. First, we have Will getting ready for bed, then his dream, which is done in italics and that also has part of Chapter 1 written in the piece as it is the dream in which our teacher has over and over again featuring the day Jason died, but now with a twist. After the dream, it is dealing with Will waking up. And WOW, last chapter some more praise and criticism, and I want o say thank you guys for that! We are nearing the end (actually, next chapter is the last one... wow), and I want to say thank you, as I'm having a blast with this piece. Enjoy!**

* * *

Will yawns, pulling back the covers of his bed. He turns to pull the blinds so no one can look in, but he stops, catching gaze of the moon in the sky. A patch of light finds itself pocketing in the corner of Will's bedroom, causing him to smile. The blonde is exhausted, he feels like everything is pulling him down and that he won't be able to resurface.

Today was rough. And the day still hasn't ended yet. He sighs heavily, rubbing his forehead. Aphrodite's stinging criticisms ring in his ears with the reverb of a thousand drums and trumpets, and then the rage that surmounted in his veins after seeing Nico's cheeky face, completely abashed for what he did, yet not feeling guilty in the slightest... ugh.

The teacher slinks beneath the covers, turning off his light. An earlier conversation with Nico comes back to him before he shuts his eyes. He's been dreaming of Jason, of his _son_ , and that it ends the same way every time. Maybe this will be the night that everything changes for the better?

* * *

 _Will sits at his desk, closing a folder. A knock causes the teacher to look up, surprised. Jason Grace's youthful face appears in the doorway. The teen knocks once on the door after the teacher looks up, then Will waves him in. Jason wrenches the door open, letting it slam, though the earnest blonde winces for all that he has to claim with his name._

 _"Jason, hi." Will nods._

 _The blonde scratches his neck anxiously, his eyes darting into a corner of the room, unable to make eye contact. "You have a minute, Mr. Solace?" he asks, very skittishly, his voice pitching upwards due to nervousness. Will raises an eyebrow at this strange behavior. This was unlike the cheerful, bright, intelligent student he saw in class earlier that day._

 _"Of course. Grab a seat."_

 _Jason nods low, pulling a desk all the way up to Will's. The teacher sits back, rummaging around his drawers for a pen. Particularly red, a sharp cardinal would be ideal. Will likes red, though it has its negative connotations. Mistakes. Negatives. Problems that need to be pointed out. Sad memories of failed college papers with so much red ink over them that it made the Red Sea sound like a joke. "Okay." the student says, after he is close enough to his English teacher._

 _"You came here a little later than usual. Thought you weren't going to show." Will comments earnestly from beneath his desk, going through his suitcase. Why there'd be a pen in a suitcase is beyond the adult at this point. It's going to drive him insane._

 _"Yeah, I'm sorry about that," Jason blushes, once more scratching his neck. "I was playing Ultimate Frisbee with some other seniors, Thalia and Luke included, on the back field. Nico had this immediate stroke of genius and he wanted us all to play and-"_

 _"Ultimate Frisbee? What's that?" the teacher pops his head up, frowning. He's never heard of this particular sport before. If it even is to be called a sport, at that. Perhaps Will Solace spends his time reading too many books, like Thalia alludes to nearly every day._

 _The blonde frowns, rubbing his chin, unsure of how to respond. "Umm... it's kind of like a weird version of football? Except instead of the football we throw a Frisbee. You can't hit anyone, so no tackling or anything like that. Just receptions and that you hope the opponents run slower than you do. No referees either. Unless you count Nico... and you don't even need to really be athletic, so-"_

 _"Ultimate Frisbee!" Will claps his hands together, smiling earnestly. It sounded rather interesting. Maybe Nico could show him sometime, in the mix of their busy schedules._

 _"Yeah."_

 _"The most extreme form of Frisbee imaginable..." Will chortles, eliciting a giggle, very immature for an adult of his caliber to do._

 _"Yeah." Jason returns the smile._

 _"Or- or maybe it's the last Frisbee in a series of them?" the English teacher speculates, before clapping his hands once more, standing up in perhaps too much happiness. "The Final Frisbee! Hell, that'd be a good name for a book, wouldn't it?"_

 _"I'd read that."_

 _"Now you're just being nice."_

 _The two share a hearty laugh, Jason wipes away a few tears from his face as now he's doubled over, clutching his stomach while a mix of frog croaks and gasps spill from his throat. Will takes the joyous diversion to scour for the red pen once more, getting on his hands and knees underneath the desk. He seizes it, the sneaky item hiding by Jason's foot. As the blonde comes back up, he knocks his head hard on the desk, swearing heavily. For a split second, he freezes, catching notice of Jason's face which has now gone serious. The happy feeling has evaporated, it transformed into one of bleak proportions._

 _Will whistles low, rubbing his head, acting coolly. "So... is there anything you wanted to talk about?"_

 _"Umm... yeah, I do." Jason admits after a moment's silence, biting his lip._

 _"Because I feel that we should cut to the chase and call it a day, shouldn't we?"_

 _Jason scratches his neck for the umpteenth time since this conversation began. "Okay. Am I in trouble?"_

 _"It's about the paper you turned in on Monday. Finally got around to grading your class... and I have to say, I was disappointed primarily with how you performed."_

 _Jason stirs in the chair uncomfortably, picking at his right arm and looking elsewhere. "I'm sorry."_

 _"Nothing to apologize about, Jason, I just wanted to know if something was troubling you." Will puts his hands back on his desk, sitting up, a stern gaze marring his features as he leans in._

 _For the past week, his six periods of AP Literature and Composition had been furrowing through the book Metamorphosis by Frank Kafka, a contemporary piece of literature about a man being transformed into an insect of sorts and how his transformation completely destabilized his family home. A rather peculiar book from the 1930's, it withstood seventy plus years of being renown for exemplary tastes. Will particularly did not like the book, but he had a curriculum to teach. At the very end of dissecting it, the assignment was that the students were to pick a character from the story and write an essay as if they were that character. Being able to use either Gregor, the main character, his sister Gretel, or their father, the essay had to include underlying thoughts on what the characters were feeling at specific moments throughout the tale with what wasn't mentioned._

 _Needless to say, Will expected amazing results and soon became rather let down at the minutia being given to him counting as essays. One of his top students, which he has no shame in ever admitting, is Jason Grace, until his paper crossed his desk and there was essential word vomit on the paper that accounted for nothing._

 _"Bottom line, Jason," Will began to speak, "Is that your paper was insufficient in displaying the true skill you have. Either you didn't want to do this assignment or throughout this whole school year you've been giving me this false sense of actually having interest in what you're doing."_

 _"Sir?" Jason frowns, unsure of exactly what to respond with given the bitterness of his teacher's statement._

 _"As you know, currently sitting in the grade book, is a zero. But since you did turn in the paper, I can't give you a zero. While you wrote about the prompt I issued, it missed its mark by more than tenfold," A pause, Will shifts himself in his chair, his face becomes sterner. "I'm only going to ask you this once, and then it'll be out of hands forever. What grade do you think you deserve on that paper?"_

 _"Well-"_

 _"Should I just give you an A so you can go?" Will interrupts, not even letting the kid get an answer in._

 _"Sorry?" Jason furrows his eyebrows together. Is Mr. Solace on meth or something? Acid? The ole reefer, perhaps? If Will Solace thinks Jason Grace is acting strangely, then Jason Grace certainly is thinking that Will Solace is acting strangely, too._

 _Will pats his hand on the desk, startling the younger blonde. "Come on. Give me your paper, let me sign it so I can give you an A."_

 _"I'm confused, Mr. Solace." Jason admits._

 _"The only reason you've ever been given the grades that you've ever received is because I saw a capacity for critical thinking. A capacity to go beyond further than what was taught and for good measure," Will explains, scooting back and forth between the desk and board. "But, this time around it wasn't what I knew you could do. I didn't give you a leg up for you to think I'll just bail you out whenever you bomb."_

 _"That isn't why. I'm just distracted."_

 _"What's distracting you?"_

 _Jason blushes deeply, his neck turning the same shade of cardinal as the uncapped pen in Will's hand. "Well... not to get too personal, but... me and Piper, we've been uh... we've-"_

 _"Jason, please do not continue that sentence." Will holds a hand up, blanching. He does not need to hear about how his son that doesn't even know that Will is his dad, having sex. Especially with another student that is also in the same period. Especially when now that the blonde's image of his son is shattered and probably cannot be repaired again. Great. Just great._

 _"What?" the younger blonde looks perturbed as to why this is not acceptable for classroom discussion._

 _"I am not going to go into that subject matter," Will states firmly. "Because it is also a ghost of my past I am not reintroducing back into my life." his mind adds later on, but he does not say it aloud as if to raise suspicion._

 _"Oh. Okay," Jason's face falls in disappointment. "I thought-"_

 _"Just don't. Continue this subject. I'd much rather like to talk about your paper, on the other hand. That zero isn't going anywhere unless you are willing to work with me."_

 _He takes a moment to let this sink in the kid's head, hoping for the real answer he's been waiting for. Leave it where it is. I failed at what I know how to do. Except, he doesn't get that satisfaction. Far from it. "I think I deserve... better." Jason answers after a moment of silence, his expression deep in thought, eyebrows furrowed together with a sense of pensive action._

 _Will almost brays in his throat at the response. "Would that be suitable then? There's no number in the system for 'better', Jason. I can write on your paper that, Do Better, but it certainly isn't enough and does not qualify as a grade."_

 _"Mr. Solace-"_

 _"Would you rather prefer a seventy, or an eighty, or a ninety? I can't give you a 'better'," to accentuate his point, Will moves his fingers to resemble air quotes. "How does an one hundred sound, then? To get a perfect score on your worst paper, ever? Would that be easier for you?"_

 _"No, it wouldn't be. I don't want a grade I never deserved, which certainly isn't an A+," Jason argues, his hands tightening to fists. "Mr. Solace, I don't need you to insult me. If you want to talk about my grade, let's talk-"_

 _Will sneers at his student, this is being supremely unprofessional, but screw it... he's an adult and he's going to act whatever way he aspires. "Good, you're being mature. Asking the teacher if they can talk. So, Mr. Grace, let's talk. You chose the role of Gregor in the Metamorphosis, correct?"_

 _This is a yes or no question, nothing in between, where there's a wrong answer. Will has no idea why he decides to pinpoint a scowl at Jason as he speaks, but the kid's lack of acknowledging his blunder is really digging deep into his skin. "Yes." Jason nods, curt and quick._

 _The teacher smirks slightly, before continuing. "You titled your paper... 'A Bug's Life- The Worst Disney Creation'..."_

 _Jason laughs to himself, though he quickly shuts up by clamping a hand down over his mouth, blushing heavily. "Y- yeah."_

 _Will sighs, leaning back into his chair. "That, automatically, Mr. Grace, suggests to me that you aren't taking this paper or this class very seriously. For being such a studious student in your other classes and in mine at default, I hope you can see why this is rubbing me the wrong way. It's a complete 180 from your usual self."_

 _"Mr. Solace, I am taking this class very seriously."_

 _"No, Jason, you're not, evident by-"_

 _"I am!" Jason yells, pounding a fist on the desk. Will repulses back, out of shock. Jason's warm gaze burns under a raging expression, before it falls lax suddenly, the azure glow returning, the boy's voice becoming impossibly soft, his hands shaking. "I am, Mr. Solace. I've just had a lot on my mind lately. My course load is quite heavy... and there's Piper... and I can't focus on everything everyone wants me to do."_

 _Will scowls, and he's mentally kicking himself under the desk as his response is even more heartless than he imagined it could've been. "I understand that, Jason, but do you have any idea how much I have on my mind?"_

 _"A lot?" the boy suggests weakly, shrugging._

 _"A lot," Will confirms, nodding, hands curling into fists, clenching and unclenching. "I have nearly two hundred students to keep track of here, let alone household bills, other problems with the teachers and friends and family I have. It's a problem with being an adult... you're plate is never cleaned. But, despite all that I find time to do my work. I still find time to grade these abhorrent papers which make me want to scratch out my eyes. Pile into the equation that some students get the gall to complain to me about what they're receiving based off their work makes everything turn into one pile of shit," Jason winces reflexively at the swearing. "And, Mr. Grace, this may come as a shock to you, but I just can't start grading everyone differently based on what is or what is not on their mind. That's a form of special treatment. Favoritism. You're an excellent student, so you above all else cannot have special treatment."_

 _"I don't want special treatment." Jason whines, then he grimaces, a hand instinctually going up to his forehead, sensing a headache._

 _Will's anger lessens, he feels the boiling of his skin simmer some, and he's relaxed and calm once more. "I'll look at it again, if you'd like. I am more than likely going to give you a sixty, just like what nearly everyone else is getting with their meager intelligence levels. I hope that I never see this type of slop from you again, do I make myself clear, Jason?"_

 _"Yes, Mr. Solace." the boy replies, rubbing his forehead. He stands, slinging a bag over his shoulder, and suddenly bowels over somewhat, hissing, fingers plaiting his forehead._

 _"You alright?"_

 _"Yeah." Jason rights himself, taking a step for the door._

 _"Too much on your mind, son? Giving you a headache?" Will asks._

 _"I imagine so. I'm going to head." Jason steps forward, his feet crossing the threshold._

 _"Jason?" Will calls._

 _"Yes sir?" he stops and turns, his face evidently displaying the emotion of pain._

 _"Sorry if I seem to you that I'm being very mean and hard on you. A lot of potential I just can't see get put to waste," Will apologizes, making a sympathetic face. "See you tomorrow."_

 _This causes the younger blonde to frown, before he shakes visibly. "That can't happened. I can't come back and see you tomorrow."_

 _"And why's that?" Will asks, and he's surprised himself at the anger in his voice, the shaking reverb, the anger that stems from it._

 _Suddenly, everything in the classroom transforms, causing the English teacher to fall back on the floor, now a screaming, incoherent mess. Jason, in front of Will's eyes, transforms. The boy's skin starts to darken into a more brackish color, and then the blood starts to pour from every pore onto the floor, cardinal rivers and oceans colliding into the tile. Jason steps forward, eyes malicious. "You know why!" the boy roars._

 _Will rocks back and forth, scared out of his mind. "That's not funny Jason! Go away!"_

 _Jason leans down and grips the teacher's face, another scream eliciting itself from Will's throat. The dead teen's hand is cold and clammy under the adult's warm body, the crimson streaks adding a vicious light to him. "I came here to open up to you! All you did was go on and on about the fucking paper! As if the paper ever even mattered to you, did it? You just wanted to see me, to have me be your pawn, didn't you?"_

 _"That-"_

 _"Answer me!"_

 _Will shakes. "What was I supposed to do?"_

 _"You could've told me. Telling me that last tidbit of information may have saved my life! But no! I died instead, because you were too much of a coward to know any better! I would've kept it between us." Jason booms._

 _"No, you wouldn't have," the English teacher rocks his head back and forth in dissent hurriedly, like a cat who was running for the hills with a pack of angry basset hounds behind her. "Thalia would have found out, or Aphrodite, or... your DAD, and then we'd all be screwed and-"_

 _"You're pathetic!"_

 _"Give me a second chance!"_

 _"I've never liked you!"_

 _Then Jason falls into Will, the blonde teenager disappears and the blood clouds over the teacher's vision as he's consumed by a terrible cardinal wave. He lets out a scream before everything goes dark._

* * *

Will wakes with a start, screaming. Immediately the light snaps on, and the blonde has his hands hugging himself up and down. He's whole. There's no dead teenager sitting across from him on the bed sheet, the pallid carpet is still pearly white and scruffy, no red rivers or anything of the sort. Will's body is covered in an oily, glossy sheen, and he begins to curl up and cry.

He hates knowing that he is crying, but there's nothing to stop him. No Nico tearing down his door or shouting his name, no Thalia or Aphrodite to reprimand him worse than before... it is a death that he cannot escape from.

The world falls darkly on the Solace house.

* * *

 **And there we are folks! Chapter #7: Hallucination, of Cardinal Stasis! Yes, I know this one is a little bit shorter than a few of the others in this piece, but that was for a reason. Normally Will would have dreamed of Jason, their conversation having little deviation from what it was in Chapter 1, Jason would leave and die, over and over again. But... this time we have our blonde teenager turn on him, and then it just got worse from there. Our finale is next, and what shall become of our blonde teacher? Piece everything we've learned together and make your prediction below! In a few of my other stories, my readers have been on point in their predictions, so perhaps this'll be no different. Thanks for reading! Please review and let me know what you thought, I'd love to get your input. The end is upon us soon. I hope to see you all very soon for the last chapter, Chapter #8: Asphyxiation. Darkness is ahead. I hope you all have an amazing day! I love you all! Bye!**

 **~ Paradigm**


	8. Chapter 8: Asphyxiation

**Hey everyone, Paradigm of Writing here with a brand new and** ** _final_** **chapter of Cardinal Stasis, #8: Asphyxiation. This twisted and dark tale of how a student's death usurps the entire life of everyone around him is at its conclusion. With a heavy heart, I announce that we are finishing CS, despite me loving this piece with my whole heart. Wrote this story in roughly a month and a half which is quick for me in multi-chaptered pieces, but I digress. Last chapter was a look into one of Will's nightmares, and for good reason... our blonde teacher needs to get everything out in the open, and maybe he'll finally start to feel better, though I know this chapter title can be raising a few eyebrows (I'll explain at the very end). You guys are the greatest readers I could ever ask for, and I hope this story has been a roller coaster for you. I also realize that it has had its ups and downs, its positives, negatives, praises, and complete disgust for it but all in the life of a writer I suppose, especially a fanfiction author. Enjoy the last chapter, #8: Asphyxiation, of Cardinal Stasis.**

* * *

Thalia Grace sits alone in Will Solace's classroom, anxiously tapping her feet away at the tiled floor. She bites the inside of her cheek while looking around, out the windows into the brazenly lit sky. Her heart yearns to escape the confines of school and she's so happy that she's a senior this year, for once, she can escape a place that has held her down her whole life. Will is not in class yet, and it causes Thalia to wonder. _Is there a school rule that if the teacher doesn't show up within thirty minutes of class, with no substitute, that she can leave?_

Last night, her mother, Aphrodite sat her down at the dinner table and explained the whole situation to her. In short, and Thalia loves summing it up in her particularly colorful language... her mother cheats on her father, which is awkward as they're still together and still sleeping with each other, oh well. Will Solace slides into the picture, _slides_ into Aphrodite almost literally, Aphrodite Grace is now pregnant with a second child only a year after having her first... and it is enough to make Thalia's blonde English teacher run for the hills, like the coward she half believes it is.

Something stirs in the doorway, causing the raven haired girl to look up, and for a brief second her face falls flat at the sight that instead of Will, or even Luke which she'll take him at this point, is Piper. The brunette stands in the doorway, holding a bouquet of flowers in her hands, the girl looking out of place and unsure whether or not to step into the classroom.

"Hey." Piper calls from the doorway, unmoving. Thalia can understand her animosity now, she flat out embarrassed her in front of an adult, and yet Piper has the bravery and perhaps stupidity to still show her face.

"Hey." Thalia nods.

The brunette steps into the classroom some more, somewhat inching towards Will's desk so she has at least some protection from the confines of the four plastered pallid walls. "You look different," she says. Thalia opens her mouth to harsh back some rebuttal, but the other girl has no intention of her statement in any way being malicious. "It's a compliment, don't worry. Grown up, actually, for once I can see how nice your eyes are," Again she tries to interrupt, "Don't think about it, Thalia. Just take it."

Thalia bites down on her lip, swallowing every bitter retort she could've saved for her perhaps least favorite person in the world, but she digresses. "Thanks," she smiles, nodding. "I- I see you brought flowers." In actuality, the raven haired girl is purely unsure of how to go about her day now that she knows the truth, that her actions may, just _may_ have been irrational and rude and above all else out of left field.

Piper's cheeks darken somewhat. "Yeah. I did."

"Why?"

"I don't know. Because I could, maybe."

The Grace sibling eyes Piper for a moment, standing up and walking over to her. She tenses briefly, till everything about _her_ least favorite person in the world is not threatening either. "Well, Pipes, there's not going to be a casket for Jason. That's already been done and over with."

"I know."

"So why did you bring them?" Thalia asks. "Mr. Solace is allergic to certain flowers anyways, if you brought them for him. And Luke doesn't like them at all, so-"

"They're for you," Piper explains, holding them out to her, causing Thalia to step back somewhat, caught off guard. The bouquet is gorgeous, a mix of white roses, red roses, petunias, a few daisies, and a couple violets. A blend of cardinal, cotton candy pink, fluorescent yellow, amaranthine, and pearly white wrapped up together by a simple orange tie and green stems. Thalia grabs them from Piper, examining them. "I bought them for you."

"You bought these for me?" the other girl wrinkles her nose. She doesn't think she can handle another confession of love and sex to her at this moment and time.

"I did."

"Why? So you don't feel guilty?" Thalia snaps, before its too late, and she bites down on her tongue heavily. God, what is with her? She's trying to make everything better, but all of her words and actions come out wrong and then it is just a complete cluster of awkwardness and tension that shouldn't exist between them at all.

Piper recoils slightly, tears brimming in her eyes. Oh great, she's gonna cry again. "No..." her voice breaks.

"It doesn't make everything okay, you realize?"

"I know that! I know that, Thalia. I just want you to like me and-"

The raven haired girl does not know why she rears her head back and laughs, but instead of facing her fear and challenge head on, she goes back to the desks and sits down. "That's why we argued in the first place, yesterday! You want everyone to like you! That's your problem! Not everyone is going to like you, and especially not because you do petty things like this and other random shit..."

"How is that a problem? I'm just being nice..." Piper demands, her hands turning into fists. If this girl doesn't shut up, so help the brunette, Piper McLean is going to knock Thalia Grace on her ass and shut her up, just for some peace and quiet.

"You cannot just buy me flowers and expect me to like you..." Thalia rants, pounding the desk with her fists. "That won't help me forgive you."

Piper sniffs the air disdainfully. "I still haven't done anything wrong. And, I know Thalia! I know I can't buy friendship, and especially not yours!" her outburst causes the raven haired girl to stop sprouting her nonsensical drivel for a particular moment, letting the brunette slide in for the kill. "I just wanted to give them to you. A first step towards an apology, okay? They're just flowers. Not a ring, or a fancy dress or anything."

"I know what they are, Pipes."

The other girl dabs at her eyes, her voice impossibly soft. "I made a mistake, okay? I made a mistake."

Thalia blinks at her, and on that day, the girl's heart grew three times larger that day, but in actuality, it only warmed her soul a little bit. Maybe things could turn around if she strived for such a thing. "Okay. I've made mistakes too."

"Take the flowers then. Put them in water."

"I know how flowers work, Piper," Thalia snorts. "I'm not stupid, unless you think I really, really am."

"Well, sometimes the stems have water in them already, which I think causes them to die earlier than usual and that actually happened to me once-" Piper started to rant.

In a turn of irony, Thalia puts her hand up, grimacing. She had no intention of hearing a rant by the one and only Piper McLean on the dissuading usage of flowers already with stems enriched to the brink with water. Not her. Not her at all. "Okay," she says. At that, Piper takes a long and drawn out sigh, heading to turn for the door. "Where are you going?"

"Home," Piper answers. "Last day of this extended period for staying home is today... and I think I'm going to use it for once. I deserve a day off. You do too."

"Oh. Okay."

"Actually... Luke asked me to stop by. We're gonna see a movie, more than likely. He said you're more than welcome to come," the brunette looks down at her shoes abashedly. "He's not upset at you or anything. He's sorry too. For not being like the friend he was supposed to be."

Thalia bears her gaze down into Piper, causing the other girl to shuffle awkwardly. "Okay..." she says distantly. Piper turns to go again, which causes the raven haired girl to furrow her eyebrows together, catching the sight of that ring on her hand she had commented on yesterday. "Piper?" she calls out. The brunette stops. "I really, honestly, like your ring. I meant that, yesterday. I _mean_ that."

"Thanks, Thalia," Piper shuffles one foot on the tile, one foot outside in the hallway. "And, Thalia?" Now it is the Grace sibling's turn to look back up. "You can go date Luke if you'd like. I've never really liked him. He's always liked me, but I think he also cares for you. Jason was the best boyfriend I could have ever asked for, and I don't think there'll ever be a guy out there like your brother was for me." Then, with the final word in the matter, Piper walks out of the classroom, leaving Thalia Grace for the second time in her life unsure of what to say, speechless.

She sits in her chair for a minute, scratching her nails in a line dug into the desk. The bell for the beginning of school rings loudly causing her to jump. Thalia cranes her neck so she can look down the hallway, which is still abandoned. She gently touches one of the flowers in the bouquet, a particular rich ruby red rose, a petal coming off and floating to the ground. Thalia immediately gets sad. It feels like her heart, rising and falling to the beat of her world.

Will appears in the doorway, clean shaven and well kempt. His face is somewhat haggard from the nightmare he had last night, but the blonde does not let it bother him. He throws his suitcase down on the table, and is proud to say that there's absolutely nothing in it this morning. No noose for a hasty hanging or pills or nothing, he'll let this madness run its course. Thalia looks at the flowers and then back at her English teacher, standing up and going to his desk. Will shuffles through a few papers, looking up and smiling. "Good morning." he greets.

Thalia shoves the flowers in his face. "I got you flowers." she says.

He takes them earnestly, seeing the attached note. Will flips it over, reading it aloud. "To Thalia. Let's be friends, please. I'm sorry." he scrunches his nose up momentarily. Odd.

As Will looks back up, Thalia lets out a groan that completely irritates the teacher to his core. "Oh. My. God. She did not actually write that on the card, did she? After everything I yelled at her, she wants to be _friends?_ "

"Are these from Piper?"

"Yeah, they are," Thalia says, wringing her knuckles. "She- she came by and apologized. I said I'm sorry to her, too, actually. I felt bad. I'm sorry, as well, Mr. Solace, for how I spoke to you."

"It's okay," Will assures her, sitting down at his desk, giving himself a quick spin in the chair so he can have some brief happiness, just for a little while. "Just this morning I realize how selfish I was being by never getting your mother, Jason, and yourself together to explain the whole thing. Though it would've been awkward..."

She scratches the back of her neck. "It's the last day of trauma leave and she's deciding to play hooky with it. Luke won't be here either. They're- they're actually going to be hanging with each other today, seeing a movie. Looks like it'll be just us as no one has decided to show all week. I like the peace and quiet," Thalia says. Then, she blinks, as there's a lot for her to do in mending all the burned bridges that are still laying scorched across her heart. "I think, if that's alright, Mr. Solace, that I'm going to leave, too. They offered me a spot to go see it with them and I think I just may do that."

"All right. You're going to leave shortly, then?"

"Yeah."

"Is there anything else you wish to say?" Will asks, seeing as he's quite old now, that there's a hesitancy in her steps, in her words.

Thalia blinks, completely out of focus. "Oh... yeah, actually I do," she digs into her pocket and pulls out a piece of folded up paper, with sloppy handwriting all over it. "Before Piper and I blew up at each other, you mentioned Jason. You mentioning his name... well, it helped me realize that all of this anger comes from how I feel betrayed that he's gone. I- I wrote a eulogy for him," she hands Will the piece of paper, her eulogy. He glances over it briefly, smiling, then handing it back to her with bereft movement. "What? You're not going to read it?"

"I want you to," Will answers. "It'd be good for you, actually, more than you think."

"Out loud?" Thalia frowns. She really doesn't like this all that much, but more power to her English teacher, she supposes, if this is to act like a form of therapy.

"I really do." His voice is full and sincere.

Thalia unravels the paper more, smoothing it against the desk. The pen's ink bleeds through the other side, making it particularly hard to read. "Eulogy for Jason Grace, my dead brother, by Thalia Grace. Dear, Jason. The only reason you can thank me for this is because I've been thinking about you. Mr. Solace and Piper have been mentioning you up the wazoo, so there was nothing better to do than talk _about_ you. You leaving me has been the worst thing in my entire life. And perhaps it'll constantly be the worst thing to ever happen to me. I am your older sister, I am destined to hate you, but despite that, I never, _ever_ could. You were, _are_ my everything and then some. How that works, I have no idea. I just- thank you, Jason. Thank you for being my brother. I really, _really_ miss you. No one on this damn planet will ever be able to replace you. I love you. Always will." She looks up, tears clear in her eyes. Will catches himself staring at her, though it isn't meant to be creepy or anything. Thalia notices this. "What? Why are you staring at me?"

"I like your dress. I love what you wrote. Jason would- he would've thought that was the most amazing piece of literature ever written in the world."

She looks down at the floor, placing the paper on Will's desk. "You- you can keep it Mr. Solace. I'm going to- I need a moment..." With that, Thalia speed walks away, and she almost barrels past Nico who stops dead in his tracks so he can let her pass, the raven haired girl completely breaking down and sobbing. Her release was perfect, it was just what she needed, and dammit, Thalia Grace is happy that Will Solace was the person to hear her.

Will watches her go, and then swallows heavily at seeing Nico. There, in the doorway, was his answer to his problem. "Nico..." the English teacher says, blushing.

"I saved you some pizza in the fridge in the teacher's lounge," Nico waves, dressed causally in a button down and jeans. He looks amazing for this early in the morning, his eyes and face bright despite everything he's been through with a stubborn and resistant Will. "You can get it for lunch if you'd like. Has a sticky note on it that says it's for you and only you. Anyone else takes it and they die."

The blonde laughs, and gets closer to the guidance counselor who actually hasn't stepped into the classroom yet. "Umm... Nico, I just wanted to say I'm sorry for how I was acting with you because this entire week has been stressful on me and-"

Then, as if almost out of a movie, Nico hushes Will up by wrapping his arms around the blonde's face and landing a kiss smack dab on his lips. Will is caught off guard by this, suddenly stopping and embracing the sign of affection. Their tongues began to wrap around each other in a vice circle, Nico running a hand through the other male's hair. Will places a hand against Nico's chest, pressing the guidance counselor against the door, which slid out into the open.

As quick as the kiss started, it ended. Nico broke it first, staring into Will's eyes.

"What was that for?" Will asks, a smile trying not to grace itself over his lips.

"You needed it," Nico pecks at him again. "You have no idea how long I had been waiting to do that."

"Would you- would you like to stay for a minute?" the blonde asks, and for the briefest of a second, Will Solace is happy.

Nico nods, Will giggles, Will pulls Nico inside his classroom, slamming the door.

What a morning.

* * *

 **And there we are guys! That was the very last chapter of Cardinal Stasis, #8: Asphyxiation. Though the chapter title is a grim sounding end to a character, it actually can be taken quite differently towards a total number of issues. While this may seem rushed, I originally had a much larger end that wouldn't have made sense, so I decided to cut it down and this is what I came up with, hopefully it worked. Thank you all for reading! If you plan on reviewing, I have a few questions for you that I'd like to have answered, as a feedback questionnaire thingy.**

 **1) Who was your favorite character, and why?**

 **2) Least favorite character, and why?**

 **3) Favorite moment of the entire piece, and why?**

 **4) Least favorite moment of the entire piece, and why?**

 **5) I if am to post any more PJO stories of any kind, will you check them out?**

 **6) Any other general thoughts or consensuses on the story?**

 **This has been wild ride and I am beyond happy to say that it is finished. I love dabbling in this fandom, and I have to say, I had a blast writing Cardinal Stasis. Thank you all so much for reading, reviewing, favoring, following, PM'ing me and more. I do not know when my next story or one-shot for Percy Jackson will be (as my last piece in this fandom was Ichor, a January _2015_ piece for lord's sake), but I can guarantee you this. It'll have Solangelo in it. Love you all! Have an amazing day! Bye!**

 **~ Paradigm**


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